Purpose
by AbyssalDreamer18
Summary: The power. The pain. It had to lead to something. But just what exactly? Would the outcome be joyess...or disastrous? Atem x OC (8th Millennium Item). Redone version of A Servant, Priestess, or More? Prequel to the Bonded series.
1. Taken

_NOTE: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh!, I just own my character, Zaria. Originally called 'A Servant, Priestess, or More?' but was later changed as of 12/14._

_This story has been rewritten so many times, so hopefully it is up to perfection._

Murderer. The only word people use to describe me. No beautiful, kind, honest, or special. Not like they used to say. Before the incident. It happened when I was eight, living a happy life with my beloved parents. Father… was a bit off that night. He had tried to hurt me. Mother tried to stop him. Something snapped inside me; the next moment they were both dead. I've been cursed with that ability ever since. It's been seven years, I'm now fifteen, and nothing has changed. In my village, I grew up alone, but people still found the opportunity to make me work for them and abuse me. Fear was a common emotion.

I've grown away from that. Fear only makes us weaker, but it's hard to ignore. Everyone was horrible to me. After my parent's death, I was constantly beaten, the scars still remain. Some new, most old. The blood is recent. A matter of days ago, I was serving another man of my village. More beatings. It snapped again; he died. I cannot control my abilities and I only hope one day this curse will end. I've injured many, but I've only killed three; my parents and him. Having heard of the man's death, everyone in my village ganged up on me. That is why I stand here now.

People walk around the slave trade waiting to buy someone useful. A man grips my shoulder to make sure I don't run, but even if I did escape, I wouldn't go anywhere with the shackles placed on my wrists and ankles. I move my bare feet to keep the soreness of my legs away and his grip tightens, "Stay put." He growls.

It's not like I was trying to escape. I nod anyway. Two particular men in the trade catch my eye. One is youthful and wears robes of blue and white. The other is bald wearing only white. Accompanying them are several guards. They must have some relation to royal status judging how they appear. Both of them scan around the trade and pick out a few people here and there. They look trustworthy, but as I've learned many times, looks can be deceiving. "How much for the girl?"

I look up to see a heavyset man standing in front of me. His grin makes me glare at him and I want to run away as fast as possible. His features and just the feeling coming from him make him untrustworthy. I shake my head explaining I'm not interested. The grip on my shoulder increasingly tightens, "Two-hundred silver pieces. No less." The man holding my shoulder says.

The man's eyes grow narrow as he stares from me to his pocket. _I need to run. But where? _ My eyes scan the area to search for an escape route. There are too many people around; I won't make it one step. "I believe I can pay." The heavyset man says, "I will take her."

The grip on my shoulder dissipates. The other man grabs the shackles from around my wrists and yanks me forward. I do not move. Another yank, but I barely take a step. The man's glare focuses on me on yanks harder. This time, I fall to the sand. Men surrounding me laugh at this and shout crud things. I don't bother to get up to my feet; there is no purpose, even though I realize the consequences. The man yanks on the chain again, but I still don't move. "Damn it… get up you brat!" he shouts kicking my side.

I try not to yelp, but it escapes my mouth. The agony within me threatens to surface, but I do my best to suppress it. The man kicks me again and this time laughter is heard. I can feel it starting to snap… my being losing control. The power within me surges, but I have no control. The aura around me forms and everyone takes a step back. Then it comes; the single huge burst of power. Everyone falls backwards and I can tell the injuries must be serious, no deaths though. I get up onto my feet weakly and scan the area. Dust rises into the air and people lie on the ground helpless. The shackles on me have broken and I'm free to run.

I'm weak, but I manage to run. My bare feet slipping across the grains of sand until I trip. I glance up to see that one of the guards that accompanied those two men earlier now stands a top of me as I lie on the ground. His weapon held fiercely in his hand and pointed at me, "Master Shada, what do you suppose we do with her?" the guard asks.

I glance over to see the bald man from earlier and the younger one standing behind me. I notice a golden key in the bald one's hand and it starts to vibrate and glow. _Who are these guys? _ "Do you sense a Ka within her?" the younger one asks.

"Yes Seto, her powers are the strongest I've seen. We must bring her to the palace." The bald one says.

_Palace? They cannot mean the palace, in which the Pharaoh presides, do they? _ I do not understand any of this. Before I can do anything, a sharp pain hits my head. I lie there until all I see is black.

~.~.~

My head throbs desperately. I open my eyes and notice the metal I'm lying on. I sit up and look at the metal bars around me. Not the first time I've been in a cage. I look around to see I'm in a dark room with neatly organized stone work on the walls, its most likely underground. I look down at myself to see that I'm back in shackles but still wear the same dirty dress I always wear. The door on the opposite side of the room opens up to reveal a pair of guards.

The two of them start walking into the room, making me scoot to the back of the cage. One opens the cage door and they glare at me as if expecting me to come crawling out. "I'm not moving." I say.

Their glares only increase. Unfortunately, it's not a particularly large cage, so one of the guards easily reaches inside and grabs my wrist to yank me out. _So much for not moving. Great job, Zaria. _The guard has a firm grab upon me and yanks me out of the room. The hallway is just the same; neatly packed stones.

They lead me down the hallway and then up a long staircase. Judging by the characteristics, I'd say that was a dungeon. We finish climbing the stairs and they now lead me through another hallway on ground level. _What will these people do to me? What could be done in the palace that they couldn't do in the desert? _ The guards stop by a pair of large, well-made doors. They push them open to reveal a large throne room, where five men and one woman stand.

I recognize two of them as the ones referred to as 'Seto' and 'Shada'. My eyes wander over to the throne in the back of the room, which remains empty. I had heard a rumor that the Pharaoh had died about a year ago, which I guess the empty throne confirms that. People say there's an heir, but I'm surprised they haven't taken the throne yet if there was one.

My attention returns to the six people in the room, who then dismiss the guards much to my surprise. "Shada, please confirm your suspensions for us." An older man says.

Shada nods and takes a step closer to me. He takes out that same golden key from before and holds it so it faces me, "Millennium Key, lead me into her soul." He says.

_Millennium Key? Soul? _ My body grows stiff and I feel unable to move. I eventually get feeling back into my body and Shada steps away from me, "I am correct. A great beast still resides within her soul." He says turning toward the others.

_What do they plan to do? Are my abilities what they refer to? _The one called Seto smirks, "Alright, guards bring us forth a tablet!" he orders some guards lingering around the room, "The Millennium Trial is in session!"

_Millennium Trial? _Moments after the guards leave the room, they come back pushing in a large, flat stone tablet. It towers about ten feet tall and is (obviously) rectangular. "Master Aknadin, you may begin." Seto says.

The older man now walks up to me, "The Millennium Eye will now judge you." He says. My body goes stiff once again and I feel the energy of my abilities rising within me. I try to suppress them because no matter how confused I am, I don't want to harm anyone. "Impossible! The beast within will not release itself! But, my fear is that it's too powerful to control."

"Yes, the Millennium Key senses it now as well." Shada says, "That sealing tablet is far too small. The beast within is too powerful."

"That's preposterous!" Seto says.

"What other option is there?" the woman asks.

"Bring her to the dungeons. Her fate will be decided later."


	2. Decision

The cold stone chills my body. Shackles dangle once again from my wrists and arms. _What could these people possibly want from me? Do they wish for me to die? _I remember their words in my head. I feel they won't kill me. _Why would they wait? _They must want to use me for something. That's one of the things I hate most. I've got to get away if that's the case.

I look amongst the darkness. I cannot see anything. The room is too dark and there are no windows or anything. Only the sound of my breathing can be heard. I look up and hear the door click from the other side of the room. _Why didn't they kill me?_ It's not that I want to die, but I'm surprised they didn't at least try to judging by their reactions. "Rise."

I look up to see a pair of guards standing by the doorway, which floods light into the room. I slowly stand up and take a few steps toward them. One of the guards grabs my arm and pulls me forward. The two of them lead me out of the room and into a hallway as we begin to climb a set of stairs. I must escape. There has to be a way. Once we're done climbing the various stairs, I take my chance.

I elbow the guard behind me and run. As fast as I possibly can. I try not to trip over the shackles around my ankles, and I manage. There's no need to look back; I can already tell there are guards running after me. I turn a corner only to find a hallway with nothing but more doorways leading to useless rooms. _Damn_. For whatever reason, I run through it. Next thing I know, I trip. I put my arms up to block my face from meeting the floor and my skin scraps against the hard stone. I'm certain there must be blood coming from part of it. Before I can get up, arms grab the crooks of mine and drag my away.

I start screaming and thrashing around even though I know it's useless. No one will help me. No one ever has. The guards drag me along as I end up back in that same throne room. They position me in front of the same six people. For whatever reason, fear rises from me, but I try to force it down. "What do you want from me?" I spit at them.

"Certainly that creature within her isn't evil." The woman says turning toward the others.

"No, now that I see her, that creature represents Light, not Shadow." One man says, "She has done nothing wrong and that is a sign of hope."

"Tell us, girl. What is your name?" the one named Seto asks.

"Zaria." I mutter.

"Zaria, within you is the power of a great beast. It would be worthy to hold in our army of Shadow Creatures. But, we cannot have your Creature without you."

"You won't kill me, will you?" I blurt.

Seto turns toward that other man, "Mahad, perhaps you may explain."

"Of course. Zaria, the Creature within you seems to fluctuate with your emotions. If you remain here, we can help you control it better. If not… then we can't let you keep endangering people, and Fate may not be so grateful to you."

Death. They'd kill me if I refuse. Tough decision actually. If I die, then all my pain will be gone. I'll be free from this earth. But if I become one of _them _then supposedly, I'll live a better life. A better life would be like a dream. I sigh, "Alright, I will agree." I say.

"From this moment on, you will be trained as part of the Pharaoh's court. You'll be given the title _Priestess._" Seto says.

"Priestess? Doesn't that seem a bit much?"

"Considering that we can't just let you walk free with such a creature, no. Even if we help control your powers, you will remain here and your Creature will serve under the Pharaoh."

"Yes," an older man adds, "You will be trained under combat, magic, and other tasks of being part of our court."

"Hold on," the woman says, "We must not throw things at her all at once." She now looks at me, "You will be given your own quarters in the palace and be taken care of just as any other noble."

I nod, "Thank you."

Politeness usually isn't one of my strongest suits and I trust I do not have to explain why. So, me saying 'thank you' is a rarity. A guard walks up to me and unlocks the shackles from around my wrists and ankles. I rub my wrists to try and get them to stop hurting and get the feeling of metal weighing me down to rub off. I also move my feet around to do the same to my aching ankles. Seto waves his arm and a servant comes forward, "Guide her to her chambers." He says.

The girl nods and I follow her out of the room. I try to take a mental note on how to get to my room from the throne room, but these hallways are just hard to memorize. There are so many corners to turn and doorways to pass by its just… unbelievable. The girl finally stops walking next to a door and motions for me to walk inside. I nod as a thanks and enter the room as she continues walking down the hallway.

I gasp at such a room. It's so different than anywhere I've ever slept in my life, but in a good way. Not even the house I lived in with my parents could compare, but then again, we weren't exactly even middle class. I feel a frown go onto my face as I think of them. No, that's the past. Get over it.

My eyes scan around the room and observe it. There's a neatly-made bed to my left against the wall filled with soft linens and with a couple of end tables next to it. To my right is a doorway, which I assume leads to a washroom. And finally, against the back wall, lies a balcony. The room is simple, but I find it still elegant. I head over to the balcony and look out of it. In the distance, is the Imperial City. I can see people walking around and going through the merchant stands even from this distance. I go back inside and sit upon my bed. The mattress and blankets threaten to engulf me into it, but I manage to not get myself to be too comfortable.

A sigh escapes from my mouth. _What have I just gotten myself into? _This appears to be my life now.


	3. Encounters

I wake up wrapped into the soft cloths. It's the first time I've slept in a bed in almost a decade, and I'll admit I miss the feeling. Not that I'm surprised, but it was certainly more comfortable than any other bed I've ever slept in. Sunlight from the balcony floods into the room and I throw the blankets off of me. I swing my legs over the bed so my feet touch the floor.

I kind of feel bad for sleeping with the dust and dried blood caked on me. This place is just so clean compared to what I'm used to. It was just so exhausting yesterday that I guess I didn't even consider bathing. I stare back at the sheets to see an outline of my body made of dust and dirt. A knock now comes from the closed door. It opens as a girl (probably few years older than I) walks into the room. She glances at me and smiles, "Good morning."

"Hello?" I say.

She seems to sense my confusion, so she gives an explanation, "Oh, pardon me. I'm here to assist you in bathing and getting dressed."

The torment. Abuse. Those moments crawl right back into my mind. How close I was to being in the hands of those horrible men. I resisted though. Resistance, beatings, screaming; it never ended. But they have done nothing to me in such a manner so horrid. My body against theirs was _never_ an option for me. The very thought of a stranger, or almost anyone, being around my bare body, even if female, makes me want to scream. "Get out." I mutter.

"Excuse me?"

"Your assistance isn't needed."

"But Miss…"

"Get out!"

She lowers her head and silently nods. I watch her leave the room slowly and shut the door. Maybe my behavior was a bit uncalled for, but I cannot take any chances. Even if this place seems safer. I sigh and walk over the washroom. I close the door behind me and start to remove my dress. I throw it to the opposite side of the room and step into the bath, which already has water in it. I can't remember the last time I had bathed, so this feels like a luxury. Maybe it was when I still actually had a home. Now that I think about it, I probably smelled horrible in front of the other Priests. I scrub myself down in the warm liquid, and manage to get the blood and dirt off of me. Afterwards, I just sit there and enjoy myself.

My eyes now look at the scars all along my body. They're noticeable, but most have begun to fade, and blend with my skin. The recent ones, however, still remain visible. I step out of the bath and find a towel resting in the corner of the room and try to get the moisture out of my hair. I now wrap the towel around my body and exit the washroom.

I notice something lying on the edge of my bed. Now that I step closer, I can tell it's a dress. It's long, sleeveless, and in an elegant white. I remove the towel from around me and start putting on the dress, which reaches just below my ankles. It has golden trim and I tie the belt into place. I place a pair of armbands on (they were lying next to the dress) and slip on a pair of simple shoes. I comb out my burgundy hair that reaches halfway down my back with my fingers and adjust the blonde parts in the front at the sides of my face.

I have no idea what to do now. The Priests told me I won't start training for another few days, so I just have time to explore, I suppose. I close my door behind me and start making my journey around the palace. Kind of wish I had a map though. I'm going to get too easily lost in this place, in fact, I think I already am. I go down a set of stairs and I think I'm near the dungeons. The hallways are dark and narrow with torches lit evenly apart from each other. There are virtually no doorways here, which is quite surprising.

Something now grabs my attention. I'm not sure what it is, but something around here is… calling to me. I continue walking down the hallway and eventually come to a doorway. It's cracked and seems like no one has entered it in years. My hand slowly goes to the knob and grasps it. _What is calling me here? Why am I bothering to look?_

Before I know it, my hand twists the knob and the door _clicks _open. I slowly walk into the dark room and the torches from outside of it offer some light into the room. The room actually seems completely empty, but then a table in the back of it catches my attention. On it is a small wooden box with a few minor scratches upon it. It isn't the box I'm being called to; I think it's the contents _inside _the box. I slowly walk inside the room with caution and reach for the box. I open it up to find a golden pendant. Its round has wings that stick from the top of it, and there's an eye that forms in the middle that I notice the other Priests' golden items have.

"What are you doing in here?"

I whip around to see the one referred to as Seto standing in the doorway. I'm not really sure how to answer that, since I don't really know myself. "S-sorry." I say, "I just wound up here. What-what is this?"

I hold up the item to him. Seto sighs, "Many years ago, during the reign of our previous Pharaoh, Aknamkanon, our kingdom was under a brutal attack from coming enemies. To stop them from advancing, he ordered the creation of seven mystical items called the Millennium Items. These are the Items that all of us Priests wield, as of my Millennium Rod." He points to the golden rod in his hand, "But during their creation, an eighth was created, which is what you hold now. We locked it away here because no one was able to wield it; it never chose its owner. We like to refer to that as the Millennium Pendant. Now, how did you end up here?"

"I'm not sure. I was wandering around and then I felt this weird presence. It was like this- the Pendant- was calling me to come here."

His eyes widen and he gives me a weird look. "Put it on."

A puzzled expression crosses my face. There's a rope attached to the Pendant, so I put that around my neck and let the Pendant dangle from it. I look down and see that the Pendant emits a small glow and then returns to itself. I glance up at Seto to see his eyes wide again. "What?" I ask.

"Keep the Item." He says regaining himself.

"What?"

"Keep it. You must be the worthy holder of the Pendant."

~.~.~

Another thing I never expected. I wander around the palace hallways staring down at my feet. _What does Fate simply want me to do? _ _What more will it offer me? _My eyes wander to the Pendant, which shimmers from around my neck. I wanted to go back to my bedroom, but unfortunately, I don't know where I'm going. Even now, I have no idea where I'm going. And I don't want to sound like an idiot asking where I'm supposed to go.

I look up to see the hallway ends soon. Sunlight comes from the end of the hallway and I notice a garden lies there. It's actually more like a courtyard, since hallways surround all parts of it. Grass covers the area like a blanket, flowers bloom gently, a huge tree that sits in the middle, and a small pond that lies elevated from the ground surrounded by stones. I walk through it and admire the beauty of the place, which is very well maintained. I stand next to the pond and watch as the fish in it swim around freely. _If only life were as simple to those fish as it is to humans_. Fish get to practically bath in happiness and die quickly, when humans have to suffer and fight for everything we get, while death never comes quickly.

The grass next to me now begins to rustle. I look up to see a boy, or man (whichever), walking in my direction. His hair spikes up in three different colors and his eyes are that of crimson. The clothes he wears are a bit fancier than the Priests' and he's obviously of noble status. He wears a long tunic that only covers his bottom half, golden armbands and other golden accents, a red flowing cape, and a golden pyramid around his neck, which I assume is another Millennium Item. He's actually quite attractive. "Who are you?" he asks, "I've never seen you around the palace before." His voice is deep, commanding, and shows much confidence.

"My name's Zaria." I say. It's actually a really vague answer now that I think about it, "I-I guess I'm considered a Priestess. And you are..?"

"My name is of no concern to you."

Bit of a rude response. And improper at that. I feel his eyes glancing over me and then I feel his gaze halt. I look up to see him staring at the Pendant from around my neck. "Where did you get that?" he asks, "If you _are_ a Priestess, then I would've seen you."

"Well, I-"

"Have you stolen it?"

That last question sounded a bit more like a demand. I can feel my annoyance and anger rising with this, "How dare you accuse me of stealing." I say, "For your information, this was _given _to me by Priest Seto."

"You speak quite confidently when you're addressing the Prince of Egypt."

My eyes instantly widen. _He is the Prince?! _"You say that title quite confidently." I say mimicking him.

"That response is very bold of you. Perhaps you have some pride."

I glare the hardest I can at him, "You know nothing of me."

With that said, I storm off.


	4. Training

I finish getting dressed and stare down at the ground. A few days have passed by since I've encountered the Pendant and… the Prince. No matter how many times I run over that argument in my head, I can't stop feeling like I'm almost intrigued by him. I'm not sure. He's real handsome, I'll give him that, but I don't know why he'd be that infuriating. I only said about one sentence to the guy and he was already accusing me of stealing. Maybe I shouldn't blame him, the Priests did seem like they're a bit overprotective of this Item.

Anyways, today is what the Priests refer to as 'the day I start my training.' I've gotten to know all of the Priests' names by now and am more familiar with them. Unfortunately, I still lack a sense of direction in the palace. For my first day of training, I'm supposed to work on magic with Mahad. Later on, the Priests say I'll work on combat and military arts. I close my bedroom door behind me and start making my way to the library. I'm only allowed to study magic as of now, not actually practice it.

I finally enter the library (might've gotten lost a few times) and look at the shelves beyond shelves of scrolls and scriptures. I then notice two people sitting down at one of the tables in the back of the room. One of them is a girl with brown hair and green eyes who looks my age and really playful, which I can predict just by her innocent smile. The other person is none other than the Prince. Just my luck. Can't wait to get accused of stealing something else.

The girl looks up for a moment and sees me standing by the doorway, "Hi there!" she shouts.

It makes me pretty uncomfortable being shouted at, especially because this place is so quiet. I slowly and cautiously approach the take they're sitting at. The Prince looks at me, but says nothing. "Hello." I say to the girl.

"Hi! You must be the new Priestess, right?" she says. I nod. "Great! My name's Mana. The Prince has said some things about you and I hope we can become friends!"

By the tone of her voice, the Prince didn't mention the stealing thing. _And what would he possibly have said about me? I've only said two things to the guy. _I look to the Prince to see his eyes looking at me, but look away once I stare at him. Something in his eyes seems different though. Instead of the cold look he gave me when I met him, they show flames of desperation. I now look back toward Mana, "Sure, I'd like that. My name's Zaria by the way." I say.

"I see you've all gotten acquainted."

I turn around to see Mahad standing behind me. I slightly nod, but keep my mouth shut. "Good." He says, "Now I expect you to do well in this class, Zaria. For now, I am your teacher and you are the student. I appear strict here because magic isn't something you should take foolishly. Understand?"

"Yes." I say.

~.~.~

After looking through the various scrolls and spells, Mahad calls our studying to an end. The Prince quickly leaves the room and Mana leaves soon after. I go to leave as well, but stop once Mahad's hand rests on my shoulder, "What is it?" I ask looking up at him.

"I think it's time your Ka is better controlled." He says. I give him a perplexed look, but I say nothing. "Follow me."

I follow him down the hallways because it's not like I have a choice. I probably do, but I'm intrigued. He leads me near the back of the palace and in the distance are eight wedge-like buildings that seem to resemble shrines. We approach them more and the larger they seem to get. Mahad leads me to one of them, which is at the back of the lineup. We enter the shrine, which is neatly lit with torches and has an altar to better overlook the walls. On the back wall is a pyramid shape that resembles that Item the Prince has, with three tablets surrounding it. "What is this place?" I ask.

"This is your Tablet Shrine." Mahad says, "Here, we will keep your army of Shadow Creatures, or Creatures of Chaos as some call them."

"Army?"

"In a sense. Each Priest has their own army of Creatures to defend Egypt with."

"But it's almost deserted in here."

The walls are pretty much empty, except for a few tablets here and there. "Well, no one has owned the Millennium Pendant before, so we were unable to fill it with tablets. The ones along here are just the discarded ones. But now that you're here, I suppose we should work on it."

"How do you use them?"

"We use a special device called a DiaDhank. We'll give you one soon. But for now, I think we should work on adding your Ka to this collection. It's too dangerous to put it all in a tablet because it's intertwined with your soul, which would only result in death if it was taken."

My eyes lower to the ground. I never knew how important my abilities-or Ka- was. For so long I've only wanted to get rid of it. "What do you want me to do?"

"Do you see that blank tablet over there on the wall? I want you to try and channel your Ka into it. Not the entirety of it, but just a small portion of it will do. By doing this, you'll be able to control it better and give it a more physical form rather than bursts of energy."

I nod and face the tablet, which isn't too far from the top of the altar. I try to focus on my abilities and see if I can awaken them. It always came and went when it wanted to, but I could never control it. No matter how hard I try, nothing happens. "I can't." I say, "It won't appear."

"You can. Use your emotions for it." Mahad says, "That seems to awaken it and fluctuate it. You're capable of it."

I sigh and try to focus on my abilities more. _Emotion…. How will I? _It seemed to always be triggered when I was angry or upset, but I'm not sure if I can make myself feel that way. My thoughts wonder back to my village. The turmoil of it. They also drift to my thoughts of the palace; how much happier it is. I can feel the energy from within me building up and I try to focus on it and make sure it doesn't create another burst of energy.

A white orb of light appears in front of me, which causes me to squint. It floats there for a moment, and then flies toward the tablet. It enters the tablet and forms a carving upon it. _I did it?_ The creature is goddess-like, but the carving doesn't offer than much detail. I feel my knees buckle and I fall onto them. I feel emptier, like a part of me is missing. My breathing increases as I try to regain myself. "Congratulations." Mahad says, "Your Ka will be easier to summon once we give you your DiaDhank. But, you should be able to still summon it without the use of the DiaDhank."

I smile that I can finally control myself. But that wipes away at the thought of how I couldn't control it sooner in my life. But that's the past. And like all things, it needs a name. I decide to call my Ka Ounouti, which is Egyptian for divine. I hope she'll be able to help me in the future.


	5. Misconstrue

I drum my fingers along the table as my eyes look over the scroll. Magic is coming a bit clearer to me now. The Prince didn't show up for lessons today. If I had to guess, he just doesn't want to be around me. Mana looks up at me from her own scroll, "I wonder where the Prince is today." She wonders.

I make a sort of grunting sound and turn back to my scroll. I've grown to like Mana a lot, even though it's only been a few days. She's always nice and friendly, which is a different treatment than I'm used to. "The Prince is never late." Mana wonders again.

Luckily, Mahad isn't here because he doesn't take interruptions very lightly. Something then snaps into my mind, "Mana, can I ask you something?" I ask.

"Absolutely. What is it?"

"Why does the Prince act the way he does? He seems so… distant."

During magic lessons, he doesn't really pay attention to anyone else. Rather keeps to himself with that same bored look on his face. I've only talked to the guy once, but I'll admit, I'm a bit curious about him. Mana's smile flickers and disappears from her face, which isn't a great look for her. "He's been like that since his father died." She says, "He was really close to him, and when he died, he just… changed. It's hard to describe."

The story seems to come together. Obviously, I've never met the Pharaoh before his death, but I heard he was a kindhearted man. The Prince must've cared a lot for him if it really affected him that much. "Oh, okay. Thanks." I say.

She nods and that smile of hers returns to where it belongs. I continue looking over my scrolls until my lessons are done for today. I fold up the various scrolls and return them to their usual shelves. It's a very strict system surprisingly, but in time I finally get them in the right spot. I wave goodbye to Mana and leave the library.

I'm finally starting to map out the palace in my mind. For once, I can get to my bedroom without having to circle the palace three times. I stare down at my feet as I walk through the hallways and pass by a number of servants. I reach my bedroom and open the door to find it the way I left it. I close my door and sit down on my bed. I still have military arts training this afternoon, but I've got some time. The breeze from outside comes in from the balcony and I breathe in the fresh air. A knock now comes from my bedroom door, which is surprising. I get up from my bed and open the day, causing a bit of a frown to appear on my face. "What do you want?" I say.

The Prince glances at me and then enters my room without even asking my permission. My gaze follows him as I watch him stop in the middle of the room with that red cape of his flowing in the breeze. "Are you here to accuse me of stealing something else?" I say.

His eyes glance up to meet mine. Crimson meeting blue. "No, I haven't." he says calmly, "I came here on behalf of our last encounter."

"What is there to say?"

"For starters, I'd like to apologize for accusing you of stealing the Millennium Pendant. And next, that last line you said to me, how I 'don't know a thing about you'. What did you mean?"

I'll admit the Prince is being pretty polite, which is different than our last encounter. But his words… just feel like poison to me. _Why is he deserving of knowing what I went through? _"Others aren't as blessed as you." I murmur.

"What are you talking about?"

"Do I need to spell it out for you?" my anger is continuously rising and I don't know why I'm bothering to make a big deal about this, "_You're _the lucky one. People aren't as blessed as the Prince of Egypt. They'd kill to be in your position. You've felt pain, I understand that. But…"

"What do you mean? Are you referring to my father? How do you know about him?"

"That doesn't matter. But that pain is nothing compared to what others- I- have felt! You shouldn't act so pathetic about your father's death, when-!"

"Do not speak of my father in that tone!"

"You're missing the point! You shouldn't feel torn apart by that! I've been beaten, tortured, and almost killed, and I'm not as arrogant as you! I've even lost _both _of my parents!" tears sting the tips of my eyes, "I-I even did the unthinkable to them! Their blood is smeared on me!"

Tears pour down my face as the memory of that day comes back. Their bodies limp, so cold to the touch. I shut my eyes to try and smear the image and conceal the tears, but it all just keeps coming back. The screaming, blood, and depression. If anything, I'm surprised I haven't ended up like the Prince, if worse. I was depressed for a time, but got over it once the struggle of the world hit me; literally. "I… didn't know." The Prince says.

I open my eyes to see him staring at the ground. Tears continue to run down my face with the thoughts of sadness and anger. First he's angry at me and then he pities me. "Just leave me alone." I mutter.

"But…"

"No, get out. Get out of my room."

He nods and leaves the room, closing the door behind him. I collapse to my knees and start sobbing once again. He doesn't understand. He never will. He didn't lose his father the way I did. _Why do I deserve this treatment? _He's ridiculing me for my own life. I've only fought to survive and I never deserved any of it. That's his way. Probably not intentional, but he always figures out how to break me. Make me feel empty.


	6. Apology

My mind keeps drilling yesterday's conversation over and over in my head. _Stop it. _The sight of his pained expression. _Get out of my head. _The tears pouring from inside me. _Enough! I don't want to think about him! _He's breaking me. I don't need more thoughts of sorrow. I've dealt with enough of that. Something about him makes me want to see him again though. _Is it just that I want to feel more sorrow? Or is it something else? _I shut my eyes in anger. I'm breaking apart even more than I was and I can't stop it.

I sit against the ledge of the elevated pond in the courtyard. The sun beats down on me, but makes me feel warm inside and less sorrowful. The breeze lightly touches the grass, which brushes against my dress. I sit there and touch the palms of my hands to my knees, which are brought to my chest. Moments later, I hear the grass rustling and someone moving toward me. _Oh no. Please don't be… _I glance up to see him. He shows sadness on his face. I don't see his usual anger. My mouth remains shut, as does his. The only contact is through our stares. "I…" he starts, "I'm sorry. For everything. I came here to apologize for it all. Accusing you of stealing, insulting you, when I yelled at you; everything."

_What provoked him to do this? Is it just because he pities me? _"Don't pity me." I spit back.

"I'm not doing this for that purpose. I've been a fool. I realize this. I'm sorry."

"Why should I accept it?"

"You're right. I shouldn't force you to forgive me. That's your choice. I… just never realized how much turmoil the people around me feel. Including you. I didn't realize how hard Life has struck you." I feel his eyes look over my body. The presence stops, so I look up to see him staring at the scars around my forearm, "I'm sorry for the pain you've felt."

_Why is he acting this way? He must pity me. Or does he really feel terrible on how he's acted? _"It doesn't matter now." I say, "That's the past."

"No, it's not. The past is never the past, it'll keep haunting you. No one should be treated in the way you were."

"The pain is my price for living. It happens to everyone."

He shakes his head, "You never deserved that. From what I can see, you're a good person who was only subjected to the greed of others. Besides, the pain a King feels is no different than a peasant."

"I'd like to disagree."

"That's not what I meant. I meant all people feel pain; it is not only those who are lonely or poor. Everyone. The class system is just a distraction to everything."

My eyes widen at his words. _Has he thought this all along? Did he always believe that? Why didn't he show it before? _I just silently nod at him. "That first day…" he starts, "You wanted to know my name, right?"

"I don't think it matters now." I say.

"I care to disagree. Unfortunately, I can't tell you my name. It's supposed to be a secret. It's… hard to explain."

"It's alright."

I kind of like this side of the Prince. Well, it's not like I _liked _fighting with him constantly, but his nicer side just seems a bit more natural to him. "I hope we'll come to a truce." He says, "Please, I'm tired of arguing with you."

I glance up to him to look him in his eyes. I can see truth within them. I glance down at the ground; I'm not really sure how well I can trust him. He could just end up flipping out once again. Besides, I can't trust people like I used to. I'm not sure how it'll turn out. "Zaria, I understand if you won't trust me." He says. _How did he know what I was thinking, _"But I promise that even if I do lash out at you, it'll be nothing like your previous experiences. I will do my best to contain myself."

I sigh. I suppose I could trust that. "Alright. We'll call a truce. But that doesn't mean I entirely forgive you."

"I wouldn't expect anything different."

I nod and stare back at the ground. The Prince begins to walk away and I feel a sting of regret. Maybe not regret, but some kind of depressive feeling. I'm afraid of him triggering more of my sorrow me again. I don't want to keep breaking, be repaired, and then break again. But apparently, that's out of my control anymore.


	7. Flee

About a month has passed since then. Unfortunately, I was right. The Prince and I have still had our arguments. The good thing is that I haven't sobbed since that one time. We spat a few words at each other, but within time, it gets worked out. We're tired of fighting, but it's something we can't help I suppose. Normally, we'll have these 'good days' where we can talk with each other (I've laughed once or twice) and just be able to withstand each other. But some ridiculous topic gets in the way and ruins the peace. I don't know why I fight with him, but something inside me always pulls me back to defend myself when we're arguing.

I drum my fingers along my balcony as I watch the city in the distance. Even though they look like mere specks from here, I can just feel the joy they feel. Everyone there seems lucky. They don't have to deal with the drama and pain there. I glance to the sun to see it reaching higher up._ Ra seems desperate to touch the sky today._ I turn away and head for the door. I shut it behind me and head down the hallway. My studying is really excelling and I'm working on improvement. The Priests say that within another two months or so, I should be finished with them.

I finally reach the library to find it empty, which is quite unusual. I shrug and head for one of the shelves and grab a few scrolls from it. I wait for someone to show up; Mahad, Mana, or the Prince, I really don't care. I shrug and look over my scrolls for about twenty minutes, but still, no one comes. A young boy, who I recognize as a servant, now briskly walks into the room. "Excuse me." I say. He shyly glances up at me, "Where are the others? I'd expect them to be here by now."

He silently clears his throat, "I've been instructed to tell you to head to the throne room, Miss."

"What for?"

"Have you forgotten? The Priests are bringing in prisoners from the dungeons."

I stand up from the table and place the scrolls back where they belong. "Alright, I'll be there."

He nods and walks out of the room. I can't believe I forgot about that today. The Priests are supposed to judge the prisoners in the dungeon with supposed Shadow Creatures in them. It's what they refer to as a Millennium Trial. I briskly head down the hallways aiming for the throne room. Eventually, I push through the giant doors to find the Six Priests waiting for me. "Sorry, I'm late." I say.

"We've already started without you." Mahad says.

"Yes, we've made a good haul." Seto says sounding like some kind of farmer. To him, Shadow Creatures are like his crops. Never stop the harvest.

"Right, sorry." I say again.

"Never mind that now." Shada says. He turns toward some guards lining the walls, "Bring forth the next prisoner!"

The guards nod and leave the room. I've never really watched a Millennium Trial before. Well, except for that one that actually happened to _me. _From what I hear, they only happen on rare occasions. I look up to see the guards returning with a man in their grasp. The shackles around him are too painful to witness, so I turn away. It's too much of a reminder. "Shada, you may begin." Aknadin says.

Shada steps forward to the man, "You will now be judged by the Millennium Key!" he says. The Key begins to glow and the prisoner remains stiff. The glow ceases soon after and Shada steps back, "Our suspensions were correct. Master Aknadin, if you may."

Aknadin now steps in front of the man. I watch as the prisoner's face shows fear and sweat drips from his face. "The Millennium Eye will now pierce through the Darkness." Aknadin says. The Eye glows and the man remains stiff, but manages to yell in pain. A dark aura forms around his body and a large creature emerges from his body. Its claws are long and sharp, the color of the beast is pure darkness, and its eyes are bloodthirsty. "Seto, now!"

Seto raises the Millennium Rod in the air and sucks the Creature into a stone tablet. It doesn't require much effort and a carving of the beast soon appears on the tablet. "Put this tablet in the sanctuary." Seto orders the guards.

They nod and begin to pull the tablet out of the room. I notice Aknadin glaring at me, "What importance do you have here?" he asks.

"What?" I ask dumbly.

"What is your purpose of being here? All of the Millennium Items hold a purpose, except for yours. So, what is your importance?"

I've never seen this side of Aknadin before. He always seemed to keep his distance from me, but I think I know why now. I struggle to find an answer to this question. "I'm here to protect Egypt and the future Pharaoh." I finally say.

"Our Priests could easily do that without an eighth member. Your answer shows that of vagueness. You even lack the properness of a true Priestess. You should've died for your crimes against the people of Egypt."

My body feels like it's going to crumble to pieces. He's ruined my being with just a few simple words. I shut my eyes tight to fight back the tears from inside me. _What is my purpose? _"Master Aknadin," Seto starts, "What have you…?"

I can't listen to the rest. I rush out of the room as fast as I possibly can. Once I'm in the hallways, and no one is following me, the tears start falling. It's not emotional tears, but rather full of emptiness. Luckily, no one is in the hallways right now. I briskly walk back to my bedroom, which is a ways away from the throne room.

I keep walking until a hand grabs onto my wrist. I'm forced to stop, but I don't bother to turn around. It's too obvious. "I heard what happened." The Prince says, "Aknadin is wrong."

"No." I say, my body shaking, "I think he's right."

"How can he be?"

"You don't know what it's like!" I now whip around to face him, but his hand still holds onto my wrist, "I've been trying to find a purpose my entire life! I've always been hopeless and now someone has the courage to say it to my face!"

I shake my wrist out of his grip and cry into my hands. He goes to place a hand on my shoulder, but I turn away. "Zaria, please, let us-me help you."

"I-I can't."

"Why do you turn away like this? Whenever we try to become friends, you pull away and start another argument."

I lift my face from my hands to look at him. I'm turning cold inside, while he's the complete opposite. Usually, it's the other way around. "You start the arguments as well." I murmur.

"Only because you keep pulling away! Why won't you let us become friends?"

"I… just can't. You won't understand why."

"Tell me."

Tears pour from my eyes more, "Just leave me alone."

I continue to run down the hallway and I'm surprised he hasn't gone after me. I finally reach my bedroom and slam the door behind me. I stand in the middle of the room and fall onto my knees crying. I couldn't. I couldn't tell him the truth. I've always been the one pulling away, but blamed it on him. I… I think I love him. I'm afraid to admit it though. The pieces within me are shattering enough as it is. Every time I get close to him, I pull away because I'm afraid of it all. If I did fall in love with him… I'd shatter. I'm scared of being hurt again. Every time I've gotten close to someone in my life, they've hurt me, or I've hurt them. I'm afraid both would happen between us. I couldn't live with that, or myself.

~.~.~

I must've been sobbing for hours. By now, the sun is setting. I feel really pathetic for letting myself cry for that long. I'm not the person I was before. _Or could I have never changed? _No. I'm not like I used to be. I can't be scared anymore.

There are too many things swirling into my mind. _What purpose do I even serve here? Should I have died? My life seems to have no purpose…_ I'm broken. I've fallen beyond repair. Too much has happened. Life has struck me too hard this time. I look up to see the sun silently sliding behind the earth. I may be broken, but I can't let myself stay in a place where my shattered pieces will only turn to dust. I've made my choice.

I wipe the tears from my eyes and stand up. I shuffle through the things in my room to try and find something useful. I stumble across one of the drawers and look through it. I find a dark cloak and yank it out of the drawer. I stare down at myself and then begin to remove the pieces of gold around my body. All that remains on me is my dress, shoes, and the Pendant. _I've got to keep it. It may have no purpose, but I need a way to remember everyone. _I grab the cloak and throw it around myself. The hood conceals my face fairly well.

I walk over to the balcony and step onto the railing of it. I jump down from the railing and make my way to the palace stables. Once there, I grab a random horse and hoist myself onto it. _I'm sorry everyone. But I can't stay here. I need to try and fix myself._


	8. Pain

I've come here within a matter of a few days. My stomach growls, for I haven't eaten in a while. I stand upon the cliff overlooking it. That place of horrible pain. It all started here. The beatings, hatred; everything. My old village. _Why did I come back here? _Something told me I need to come here. The pain was caused here, but I still came back. They dragged me away, but I returned. I killed, but yet I manage to find it again.

_Should I go there? What if I'm recognized? What would happen? _Yes. I must return. I need to do this. Just the once. Go back there and pretend to live normally. My horse stands by me, but I leave it on the cliff. I slowly slide down the cliff and pull my hood up higher so my face gets concealed better. I walk into the active village as people smile and walk around the shops. It's a fairly large village, but I navigate it like the back of my hand. The people seem more cheerful now than they did when I was here. So far, I don't recognize anyone, thankfully.

I now stop next to it. My old home. It looks the same as it did when I lived in it. No one lives in it now, but it still stands. It's a fairly nice looking home, perfect for just the three of us. I face the doorway now. _Should I-? _No, there would be too much pain. Too much regret. I'm not even sure if their bodies were removed from it. I'm sure they were, but their blood would still remain. I remember that day down to every single detail. Neither of my parents would do anything to hurt me, but I ended up hurting them.

_The innocence of a child. My innocence. It was all taken away in one moment. It was close to dark and Father was out somewhere. Mother was in the kitchen, while I was sitting on the floor trying to think of ways to entertain myself. "I wonder where your father is." Mother wondered aloud._

_"I don't know." I said. I was just trying to talk with her, because she was quieter than usual that night. It was as if she knew something would go horribly wrong._

_Mother stepped away from the kitchen and walked over to me, "Alright, beautiful girl." She said softly, "Time for bed."_

_"But mother..!" I whined, "I want to see father come home!"_

_Her face folded into a frown. "No, Zaria. To bed. Now."_

_My face scrunched up to mimic her own frown. I stood up and hugged her tightly, safely wrapped in her loving arms. The door flew open then. It was dark outside, but the shadow of my father could be seen in the doorway. He stepped inside and I could sense the uneasiness coming from my mother. I noticed his footing was off, which was unusually because I never saw him walk like that. He stood too proud. "Father!" I said releasing from my mother, "You're back! You're back!"_

_I ran up to him and hugged him as tightly as I could. He stumbled again, but never returned the hug. I glanced up to him to see him staring in some distance place across the room. "Father?" he glanced down at me, "What's-?"_

_Before I knew it, I was on the ground. He punched me right in the face. I cried as hard as I could because of the throbbing in the face. I didn't know what was going on with him at the time. But I realize now that he was drunk. My father never drank though. I'd like to assume that some other man from the village had forced him into it, or gave him a drink not worth drinking. "F-Father!" I sobbed, "W-why-?"_

_Father took a step closer. I noticed my mother was standing in shock at all of this. Once Father continued walking toward me, Mother stepped between us. "You drunk!" she yelled, "How could you let yourself turn into this! If you want to harm your own daughter, then you'll have to go through me!"_

_"Get out of my way!" he shouted back._

_I watched in horror as his hand met with her face. The hard slap made her stumble, but not budge from her stance. Seeing this, he shoved her to the ground. She hugged herself on the ground, obviously beaten up. She was a strong woman, but my father was stronger. I sat up and stared desperately into my father's eyes. They were blurred, but I could see the smallest hint of an emotion in them; hatred. "Father!" I cried, "P-please! Why are you doing this to m-mother and me? Father?"_

_He kicked me then. "Shut it, you b-brat!" he yelled continuously kicking me._

_His words began to stir and stumble, but he was still powerful. My mother got up and slapped him now. "Don't touch her!" she yelled, "If you want to hurt us, hurt me instead!"_

_He began to hit her until she was on the ground with me. But yet, she protectively put her arms around me. Father managed to hit me again though. I screamed for my mother and I. My mother knew better than to scream, but I couldn't help myself. That's when it snapped. That long burst of energy let go and their bodies scattered. The blood ran and I grew afraid of myself._

I still love my father, for I think that getting drunk wasn't really _his _fault. I've experienced lots of drunken men after that, but my father was probably the worst. Not just physically, but emotionally as well. My mother and father loved me and I know he's sorry about what he did, and I forgive him. But I can't forgive myself for what I did. I thank my mother for acting so strong then, even though I knew she was breaking inside. If my parents could see my life now, I'd know their reactions. Father would've killed himself long again, for he was never one for pain. But Mother would be convinced there was hope. She'd keep fighting. It's a war from within me, whether to go with Father or Mother's choice.

I find that my hand is now grasping the doorknob of the house. It's even turned so I can just easily open it, but I can't move. I'm not sure if I'll be able to bring myself to such a decision. I know what's inside. I saw it that night. The blood and darkness. The bodies may not be there, but there's plenty to remind me of it. My hand pushes at the door and I find it opening. The scene with the door opening in front of me feels almost identical to the way my father opened it.

The sunlight fills the room. The bare house remains untouched. I close the door behind me and stand in the darkness. Cracks of light seep through, so I'm still able to see everything. I turn toward the kitchen to see everything is in the exact position they were when my mother briefly stepped away from it. I now stand where I stood so long ago. I turn toward the door and picture him standing there on how he towered over me. By now, I'd still be shorter than him, but not by too much.

I then notice it. The drips of blood dried on the wall. The tears well up, but I close my eyes and take a few deep breaths. Luckily, their bodies aren't here. I turn away from the blood and face other parts of my home. The bedrooms remain the same also. I cannot bring myself to touch anything. Everything should be left as it was. I shouldn't disturb their peace.

After just standing there in the darkness, I've finally had enough. I hold the doorknob, but take one last look at the place. I won't come back. This place feels horrible, but yet comforting to be in. Seven years I've waited to witness it. And I got what I expected. I grasp the doorknob and pull the door open and close it once again when I'm outside. I adjust my hood to make sure I wasn't noticed.

"Well, I didn't think I'd see you here again."

_Oh no. Please gods no. Damn him. _I turn around to see him the way I remember him. Bald, greedy, and a bit heavyset. He's a fool just like his name describes. Sokkwi. One of the various men who tormented me and then sent me to the slave trade. He was one of them that wanted my body to belong to him. I resisted him, but he tried to force me into it. I threatened him, and that made him back away. Sokkwi steps close to my body and seems to inspect me, "Mhm… I've seen you've grown since our last encounter." He says. I can feel the lust of him breathing down my neck, "Have you perhaps… come back for more?"

"How'd you know it was me?" I say calmly.

"There's only one person who'd actually go inside that house. Those parents of yours really left the place a wreck, as did you. Is there any way I could… heal your pain?"

It takes all of my strength to not vomit. He sickens me. His parents must've realized how horribly he'd turn out as they named him. I can feel his eyes continuing to look me over. Stopping his stare at certain intervals. "No, there isn't." I say, "Even if there was, then I doubt you could accomplish it."

"Perhaps we need to revisit the past then."

He goes to slap me, but I move my face in time so he just barely misses. I've learned to never turn my back towards him, but I do so anyway. I hold my hood as I run away as fast as I can. Shoving people out of the way isn't the problem, my fear of being recognized is. Someone now grabs my arm and forces me to stop. I whip around to see another man, who I assume is a friend of Sokkwi's. "Well, well, well. Look at what we have here. A traitor." He now turns to everyone in the town, "Hey everyone, Zaria's back!"

The problem is, everyone knows who I am. The murders caused by me were big news. At hearing the man, everyone turns toward me and I notice a few women pull their children protectively toward them. The man yanks off my hood and pushes me forward. Everyone around the area, mostly men, now surrounds me and shouts things at me. I whip around constantly trying to find a way to escape. I now just run into the crowd and try to push them aside, but they keep me locked within them.

Someone grabs my arms behind me and I know its Sokkwi. "Let's see you try and escape." He says.

He shoves me to the ground and I lie there in the sand. I can't let them see me like this. I'm stronger than I was before. I can't be seen as weak. Father is wrong. I can't die in front of them. I go to get onto my knees, but Sokkwi kicks me down again. As I glance up at him, I see him pulling a knife from his robes. The same knife he constantly used against me. He grips it in his hand and it hovers over my body. One thing I've learned from him is that I should never try to escape from a knife. I can't show my fear. Fear is my enemy, as is everyone here, "What a coward." I say, "Just like always, you can't even use your hands to fight fairly."

Sokkwi's face shows anger now. I think of the worst possible scenario, but then the anger dissipates. Now he has a maniacal grin spread across his lips. He kicks me again, so I'm forced to face the sand again. Before I know it, the knife digs into my back. I can't help it. I scream at the top of my lungs, but try to fight back the tears. The knife slowly sinks deeper into my flesh and the pain only gets worse. It goes to the deepest part of me, but doesn't go straight through my body.

The knife releases from my skin and I can feel the red liquid trying to escape from my body. The agony pours with it and I scream again. Sokkwi laughs from behind me as I keep yelling. The torment is like continuously being stabbed over and over again, even though it was only once. It's a large stab wound from what I can feel, and sends pain going back and forth down and up by spine.

_I-I've lost this fight. I'm going to die. I can't defend myself without my DiaDhank. I'm ready to join my parents. _Wait. My DiaDhank. Ounouti. She can help me. But I barely have enough comprehension to remain conscious. _How will I summon her? _I try to chancel my pain to the deepest part of me, but that only seems to increase it. Sokkwi slashes my back again with the knife, but doesn't stab me again. Another few yells escape from my lips. My skin and clothing are tearing. I'm running out of time. _Ounouti… please, hear me…_

A white light begins to surround my body and I watch as the crowd gasps. The light around me transforms into the same goddess-like being carved on that tablet. She wears a long white dress, her eyes shine like gold, and her hair is the color of the sky. Ounouti sends a burst of energy out and sends Sokkwi a distance away from me, which causes the crowd to run away. Ounouti slowly flies toward Sokkwi and holds herself in an attack position. _Ounouti… don't. No matter how horrible he is… I can't watch you kill another person. _

She nods and flies back over to me. With her help, I manage to stand, but the red liquid runs down my back, and run.


	9. Visions

The sun sinks lower into the sky. I no longer had enough energy to keep Ounouti out to help me, so I'm venturing alone. Somehow, I've managed to stay standing. But I'm losing blood fast. I'm sure I have a trail going behind me. I take another step and I can't take it anymore. My body collapses in the sand with nothing but the desert around me.

_Why does my death drag itself out like this? _Instead of trying to be tough and save myself, I live through this pain. I could've died within seconds if I was still in my village. But, I'll die anyway now. I've been through too much. This is proof that I'm already broken. My hands grip the sand as the pain keeps intensifying. I move my hands so I drag myself along the sand, with the blood only stinging more. "Why can't I just die!" I scream in agony.

It's hopeless. Stop trying. Let yourself die. You don't need to die with any more pain than you need to. The thought of my parents make me smile how I'll finally see them again. I know how it'll plan out. I'll beg for their forgiveness. We'll be happy again. But something over it makes me depressed. The thought of the Priests and the Prince flood my mind. I'll be leaving them behind. They'll wander endlessly not knowing what happened to me. No. I don't care. They drove me out. No matter how much I may care for them, it's over.

_My only purpose was to kill and to die._

_"No." a familiar voice says, "You're more than that."_

"M-Mother?" I say.

I stare up toward the setting sun and see her figure before me. Her blue eyes looking at me warmly and her dark hair beautifully framing her face. It's just as I remember her. I watch as another figure appears beside her. His dark hair that resembles burgundy and his brown eyes. "F-Father-?" I say, "Y-you're both alive?"

_"No." he says, "We're only here to guide you." _

Tears well up in my eyes, "Forgive me, please! I-I've done the unthinkable to you! I took your life out of you! I'm sorry!"

With my sobbing, the pain from within me increases. _"It isn't your fault." Mother says, "We'll always forgive you."_

_"Daughter," my father says, "You do belong somewhere. You're a Priestess to our great Pharaoh."_

"I failed though. Even if I survive, they won't welcome me back."

_"Yes, they will." Mother says, "You don't need to prove yourself to them. You've helped them greatly."_

"Even as a Priestess, I have to be proven."

_"You can start that now. There are people there worth living for. They won't give up on you, so you shouldn't either."_

"I know, but I can't bring myself back there. I'd… I'd rather be with you two."

_"Zaria," father says, "You need to accept our death. We've watched you grow, and we're happy. We won't be happy if you die. Your life isn't ready to come to a close. There's so much that you can live for."_

_"Yes, you can't give up." Mother says._

"Wh-what is there to live for?" I ask

_"You will soon see, daughter. All of your hardships have been leading you to the path you hold now. You cannot abandon it."_

_"They are coming for you, Zaria." Father says, "They're coming to save you."_

"Who?"

_"Your friends."_

_"We must leave you now." Mother says, "Live your life, you can't give up. We love you so much."_

Their bodies begin to fade, "Mother! Father!" their bodies vanish into the air, "…Don't leave me."

I take a moment to process their words. They want me to live. They don't want me to be with them. Nobody does. But yet, I feel a sense of hope beating in my heart. I drag my body through the sand again, causing the same horrible pain to shoot through my body again. I grit my teeth, but manage not to yell. I drag myself again. The pain gets worse. This time, I can't contain my yell. _How will I live through this? Nobody will find me in time._

I feel myself losing consciousness. My eyes blur and the hot liquid on my back flows more. The darkness begins to take over. The sound of someone yelling my name is heard. But now, all I see is black.


	10. Return

My eyes slowly open to reveal a familiar setting. _How did I get here? _I'm lying in my bed at the palace. My room is neater than the time I left it. The sun is up and I assume its late morning. I glance to my body to see the Pendant is still around my neck and I'm in my nightclothes, which is just a simple short white dress. I go to sit up, but am stopped by the pain. I yelp and immediately hit the mattress again. From what I can feel, there are bandages around my midsection, and from my movement the blood is trying to escape the wound.

"Zaria?"

I glance to my right to see the Prince sitting in a chair by my bedside. _What is he doing here? _He stands from the chair and hugs me, much to my surprise. I wince because he's hugging me a bit too tightly, causing him to pull back and sit down again. "I-we went crazy trying to find you." He says, "I'm just glad we did in time."

"I'm sorry." I say weakly, "How did you find me?"

"I went out and searched for you. Then, I just found you lying there in the desert. Why did you run away from us?"

_He went out and searched for me? _I keep myself from looking him in the eye, "I-I needed to find a purpose for myself."

His face turns a bit sour, "That's mockery. We could've helped you, but you shut us out. You're an important person to us, Zaria. Don't ever forget that."

I nod and think back to that night. The encounter with my parents. _Why did they want me to stay here so badly? Was it because it's better than my village? _I suppose I'll never know the answer. The only thing I know is that they think I was meant to live for something. The only way for me to find that out is to live my own life. "Zaria?" I look up at the Prince, "What's wrong?"

"It's nothing." I say.

A knock now comes from the door. I glance up as the door begins to slowly open. I watch as all of the Six Priests enter the room. "Zaria, we're so happy you're alright." Isis says, "And to have you back."

My eyes move over to Aknadin, who is just blankly staring around the room. The rest of the Priests, however, are all looking toward me with smiles on their faces. "Thank you." I say, "I'm sorry I left."

"Forgiven." Mahad says.

I smile at how forgiving they really are. "Running from your problems seems rather cowardly of you." Aknadin says.

"Master Aknadin..!" Seto says.

"No, no. He's right." I sigh, "I was a fool for thinking running away would solve anything. I've been trying to find a purpose in my life, but now I realize that I'll find that purpose only if I keep living. I'm just glad you guys can forgive me."

The Priests nod. "This isn't my place…" the Prince starts, "But how did you injure yourself like that?"

I sigh thinking back to everything. Just the memory of it seems to trigger pain in the wound. "When I ran away..." I start, "I went back to my old village. Once people found out who I was, they began to attack me. One of the men, who I unfortunately know quite well, stabbed me. I was lucky to have even gotten away."

"How did you?" Seto asks.

"I used Ounouti, my Shadow Creature. I really owe her my life." The Priests nod and smile, "By the way, what's been happening since I was gone?"

"We've done some research with the scriptures." Mahad says, "And there is big news coming. Before the Prince is to ascend to become Pharaoh… he must take a wife."

My heart immediately sinks. Just when I think my life is getting better, something crumbles on top of me. The thought of the Prince getting married makes me want to punch something. Another reason why I have to keep pulling away from him. With a wife, I can't allow myself to fall in love with him. That would be stupid of me. And the chances of him picking me are practically none. I feel more sadness right now than anger. "Has he chosen one yet?" I ask, not even looking at the Prince.

"No, but the girl he chooses must be of wealthy descent. Our best option is to search the Imperial City. The search will construct in a few days."

I nod and stare down at myself. I'm exhausted. Things are too complex again. Not out of control, but on the verge of it. "I'm getting tired. Maybe I should rest." I say.

"Yes, that would be best." Isis says.

I watch as the Priests walk out of the room and close the door behind them. The Prince stands up from the chair he was sitting in, "Are you sure you're alright?" he asks.

"Yeah, I'm doing fine." I say, "Everything is just… overwhelming."

"It is. I'll come back later, alright?"

I nod. He goes to walk out of the room, but touches my hand first. It's a weird sensation. The door shuts behind him and I lie there alone. Even though he's gone, I can still feel the touch of his hand on mine. It's just another reminder that no matter how hard I try to get away from him, he'll always stick with me.


	11. Confessions

_"You're nothing." He says, "Weak. Powerless. What makes you think you're important?"_

_"I… don't know." I say, "But… these people care about me. I care about them!"_

_"What makes you think they care for you? You are a burden to them. Death is the only solution for you."_

_The knife digs into my flesh. I scream in agony and tears fall from my eyes like poison. Once the tears hit my body, my skin begins to burn. Sokkwi cackles in front of me and continues to slash me as the tears pour and burn. "Stop it! Please!" I scream, "You're killing me!"_

_His maniacal cackling only gets louder. "But isn't that the point? Now taste hell!"_

I open my eyes and scream. Sweat and tears pour from my face, and I get afraid that the burning will start. Luckily, it doesn't. I can't get myself to get into a sitting position without pain going up and down my body. But I finally adjust myself in that position and silently cry in my hands. This isn't the first time I've had a nightmare like that. They've happened through the past few nights. It's always about Sokkwi. He's either killing me or someone I care about.

I lie back down on my bed and take a few deep breaths. I close my eyes to try and sleep, but the image of him floods back into the darkness. I can't. I can't sleep. I've been losing more and more sleep each night. The nightmares just seem to get worse. I prop myself back up and throw the blankets off of me. I can feel the bandages around my midsection constricting me. The feeling of the dried blood is felt all around my back. The bandages need to be changed in the morning.

I swing my body so my feet dangle over the edge of the bed. I need to get out of my bedroom. It's restricting me. Driving me insane. My hands clutch the mattress as my feet touch the ground. I haven't been able to walk since I escaped my village. I've been reduced to being in bed all the time. I push myself up to stand, but the pain shoots through my body. I'm forced to sit back down on my bed and I breathe heavily trying to regain myself. _Come on, you're stronger than this. Sokkwi can't keep defeating you. You ran away when the injury was worse. _

I get up onto my feet again and fight the pain. It's the same pain I felt fleeing the village, but I kept going. I can do the same now. My foot slowly begins to take a step forward, but I almost collapse. Thank goodness the bed was here. _Keep going. _I take another step and struggle to keep my balance and fight the agony within. _Go on. _A few more steps and I'm walking again. _Yes, I can do this. _I take small slow steps and make sure to keep it steady. I lean my body against the bedroom door and clutch the knob.

I'm wearing just my nightdress and the bandages around my back. If I can get around my room, then I can go farther. I turn the knob and look to make sure no one else is here. I slowly make my way down the hallway toward the courtyard. I'll be able to relax there. The only thing I'm afraid of is once I get there, what if I can't get back? That doesn't matter. I'm overcoming the torture now.

I hold onto the walls as I slowly make my way down the hallways. I'm careful to avoid any doors to keep from disturbing everyone_. I'm almost there. You can do this. _At my words, reality takes over. The pain shoots through my body and its worse than before. I can't take this. I take another step and I collapse. A whimper escapes my mouth as my body throbs. The blood is trying to escape again. _I hate this._

Footsteps begin to come down the hallway. _Crap. Now someone will be forced to help me. _The footsteps come from a soft walk to a running pace. I wait until they're almost right next to me. "Zaria?"

I turn to see the Prince there fully dressed. He crouches next to me as I lay on my stomach, "What… How did you get here?" he asks.

"I needed to get out of my room." I say, "I'm not sure how I got here. I was just… able to."

"Come on, you need to rest."

He lifts my body up into his arms so he's holding me bridal-style. My cheeks can't help but tint a shade of pink from being in his strong arms. He carries me back to my bedroom like a father would to put his child to sleep. We make it back to my bedroom and he lies me down on the mattress, even though his arms were more comfortable. He sits on the side of the bed while he puts a blanket on me. It's strange seeing him act in such a way toward me. I stare up at the ceiling as something comes to me, "Why did you do it?" I ask, "Why did you risk everything just to look for me?"

Now I look over to him, seeing a calm but perplexed expression on his face. He sighs, "It was insanity when you were gone." He says, "All any of us could think about was where you were. The thought of you gone almost brought me to destruction. So I dropped everything to find you and keep me sane."

"But what makes me so important?"

"Because… I love you."

_He loves me? Me. Why did he say that? _My mind and heart are racing now. I look at him shocked to see the uncomfortable look on his face, "I'm… sorry." He says looking to the floor.

Before I can stop myself, I begin to prop up my body to a sitting position. Never mind the pain spreading along me. Once I'm sitting across him, I lean in and kiss him gently on the lips. I don't think neither of us really expected that. I pull away from him, "I love you too." I say.

Now he _really _wasn't expecting that. I watch as a smirk spreads across his lips and he kisses me again. This time, he pulls away first and he continues to smile at me, "Marry me." He says.

"What?"

"Become my wife. Marry me. I don't want to let you go again."

I smile, "So you intend on keeping me with you forever."

He smirks again, "Yes. Now I believe I'm still waiting for an answer."

"And I'm waiting for you to properly ask."

Amusement flashed in his smile as he rolled his eyes, "Zaria, will you marry me?"

"Yes. Of course, I will."

He kissed me once again. His warmth entered my body and swirled around in my core. "Wonderful. I'll tell the Priests tomorrow."

"You mean _we'll _tell them."

He shakes his head, "No, you need rest. You should sleep."

I sigh and lie back down on my bed. I slowly closed my eyes as he watched me drift to sleep.

~.~.~

I wake up as the morning sun brightens the room. Last night was the best sleep I've had in a while. And it felt good too. Wait the announcement! Ugh, I probably missed it! I look to see the Prince sitting in that same chair he always sits at. "Why didn't you wake me?" I ask, "I could've gone."

"You looked too peaceful." He says, "Besides, you could barely walk last night."

"I would've managed."

"Just relax, alright? The Priests have approved of our marriage."

I smile as he stands up and kisses me deeply.


	12. Doubt

_"How foolish." He says, "You think you're loved? Pitiful. You're nothing."_

_"You're wrong!" I spit back, "I found myself. You don't scare me."_

_"Resistance is futile. You're in denial."_

_"No, he does care for me."_

_"We shall see."_

_The knives enter my body from all directions. I scream and yell and cry. Once again, the tears turn to poison and dissolve my very skin away. The more I cry from the pain, the worse it all seems to get. I lie there helpless. Sokkwi stands above me and laughs. He holds that same knife in his hand. He throws it down at me and I scream the hardest I ever have. "You see?" he says, "Pain is the only thing you deserve."_

_"N-no. Wrong." I say._

_Sokkwi steps away from me as the blood only spreads. He steps a distance away from me as I bleed and cry. Someone else walks forward. His figure is so familiar and strong. "Prince, please, help me." I say._

_A mocking smirk goes across his face, "You'd think I care about you?" he says, "No. Never. I only pity you. You think I'm relieving you of your pain, when really, I'm destroying you."_

_"You're lying! You said you loved me…"_

_"You lack the sight of truth. A supposed marriage is the only way I can get you to calm down and stop feeling sorry for yourself. As much as I love seeing it, I need to keep you happy. This way, your destruction will come as a surprise to you. You'll never see it coming. I'll kill you mentally and physically. You'll be crying and bleeding, just as I enjoy it."_

_"You can't! You can't do this to me!"_

_"Of course, I can. I'm the Prince, and you're scum. Now taste Death at its finest!"_

_He pulls out a sword and stabs me right in my heart. Both he and Sokkwi cackle at my screaming and agony. How could you betray me? You've killed me._

I wake up and scream. The loudest I've ever screamed. Tears come next. It's too much. It's too real. _Why are you doing this to me? Don't kill me. _I scream more softly and I'm surprised no one has taken notice of it yet. I guess the Priests told everyone around here to avoid my screaming from my nightmares. That was the first nightmare I've had since that night. First Sokkwi killed me, and now the Prince.

I sob loudly and hold my body still feeling the sword and knives stab my body. The door begins to open and I look to see _him _come into the room. He wears just the bottom half of white short robes. He runs up to me and sits next to me, "Zaria, what's wrong?" the Prince asks.

"Get away from me!" I say, "You'll kill me!"

He's taken aback by this, "What are you talking about?"

"You want to see my destruction. You only pity me."

"Zaria, I'd never hurt you. What drove you to think that? I love you. Was it a nightmare?"

I nod. I'd like to think it's just the nightmare saying these things to me, but one part of me thinks it's true. _Why else would he want to marry me so suddenly? _The Prince moves closer to me and sits next to me on the bed. He then puts his arms around me, which makes me feel secure, must to my internal protest. "Tell me about the nightmare." He says.

I lean into his chest with silent tears still running down my cheeks. "Sokkwi; the man who stabbed me." I start, "He keeps coming back in my dreams. He tries to keep killing me over and over again. But this time, it was you who killed me."

"Why?"

"You said the marriage was a ruse to keep me happy. And then… when the time came, you'd take the chance to betray me… and kill me."

He turns my face to face him and wipes away my tears from my cheeks with his thumb. He leans toward me and kisses me softly. "If I wanted to kill you, then I wouldn't be here right now. I love you too much to hurt you. Why do you believe that I'd do such a thing to you?"

"Because the entire thing, the marriage, it's too much like a dream. I feel like I'm going to wake up and find myself back in my village, where you never existed. I need to find proof that this is real."

He stares back at the wall and turns away from me. "It's Atem." He says quietly.

"What?"

"My real name is Atem. You've wanted to know for so long. I figured that my future wife should at least know what it is. I doubt it's much, but I hope it gives you some proof."

I suppose my mind wouldn't make up such a name. It really suits him. It's short, handsome, yet commanding and elegant. I lean farther into his bare chest, making him look at me, "I guess it'll do, Atem."

He smiles and kisses my forehead, "I'm glad."

"Why couldn't you tell me your name before? Why does it need to be hidden?"

The smile fades from his lips, "Have you heard of the Great Evil God?"

Of course I have. My parents used to tell me the story. It's about this dark god named Zorc Necrophades that once tried to destroy the entire world with his power over Darkness. Thousands died at just a flick of his wrist. But, he was finally stopped by these three mythical beasts. We all refer to them as the Egyptian Gods. I nod at Atem.

"Well, there's a prophecy that Zorc will rise again, and only the Chosen Pharaoh can defeat him. They say the battle has something to do with his name. So I have to hide it from everyone to keep it safe."

"How do you know if you're the Chosen Pharaoh or not?"

"The Egyptian Gods will rise again at their hands. At least, that's what the prophecy says. The three beasts' names were never revealed to anyone. So the scriptures say that the Pharaoh will know the name of the Gods and will revive them once again."

It's an interesting, yet devastating story. It makes sense why he never told it to me before. "I love you, Atem." I say.

He smiles and begins to run his fingers through my hair, "I love you too, Zaria."

He kisses me and releases me from his arms. I want him to stay with me, but I understand if he leaves. "And I'll always love you." He says, "Don't ever think I won't. You have nothing to fear."

I nod and watch as he walks out of the room.


	13. Marriage

That day has finally come. A couple of months have passed and the wedding is today. I'm happy that I haven't had a nightmare since that one time, but I've had a dream or two that almost went to that extent. _He _still appears in them sometimes, but he never does anything to me.

In the past couple of months, I've been recovering from my injury quite well. I'm now finally able to walk again, and without pain I might add. I can actually walk as well as I used to. The process was horrible though. The agony just kept coming back, going away, and then coming right back. I've cried a few times and even considered giving up a few times. At the time, lying in bed all day didn't seem like that bad of a fate. But Atem has really been pushing me to get better. He'd come by everyday and help me try and walk and to just get better. If he wasn't coaching me, then I guess I wouldn't be currently standing here. The scar still remains from the injury and I get a painful reminder just looking at my back (it's not exactly a small scar) or even running my hand across my back.

Actually, Atem and I are already married. The process of an Egyptian wedding really isn't much. It's basically just the wife moving her things into the husband's house and they're married. I've already done that earlier today. Since this is a royal wedding, the palace is holding a small party. Currently, I'm in my old bedroom just looking at it. Even though I just moved my stuff out this morning, it's so bare already. The sheets and blankets no longer stay on the bed and it just feels so… lonely.

I snap myself from my thoughts and walk into the washroom. I shut the door and begin to undress. Once I'm in the warm water, I start to quickly scrub myself down. Normally, I relax myself in the water, but there is no way I'm going to be able to relax on a day like this. I step out of the water and wrap a towel around my body. I head back into the main room to find a dress lying on the bed.

It somehow looks even longer than my usual dress, including the sleeves. I drop the towel and carefully begin to put it on. The fabric is so soft, that it makes me feel warm inside. The dress reaches all the way down to the floor with some remaining fabric around my feet. The sleeves go down to my elbows, but are a bit baggy, so they're breathable. I comb out my hair and get a majority of the water out of it. I top off the outfit with the Pendant and my usual golden accents.

I glance down at myself to see the dress frames me quite well. I actually look beautiful. A knock at the door snaps me from my staring. "Come in." I murmur.

The door _clicks _open and my husband walks in. He shuts the door behind him and stops to stare at me. His handsome smile goes across his face as he does so. Once he escapes from his trance, he walks up to me and puts his arms around me. "You look beautiful, Zari." He says kissing me.

'Zari' has become my recent nickname by him. He started it as he was coaching me on my rehabilitation. He calls me that most of the time now and usually only says my full name when he's dead serious. Most of the time. "Thanks. New outfit?"

He nods, "Yeah, they say my other robes were a bit too 'revealing' for a married man."

Currently, he wears short white robes, a long blue cape, his accents of gold, and the Millennium Puzzle. I think back to how his other outfit featured his bare chest, which was just barely covered by his cape. "Well, they were right." I laugh.

He chuckles and then kisses me, "I suppose so."

"So, why did you come here? Just to show off your outfit?"

"No. And what? I'm not bothering you, am I?"

"Of course not."

"I'm glad. I just came here to get you for the announcement."

"Announcement?"

He nods, "We have to address the marriage to the kingdom, don't we?"

I frown at him. "Do we? I'm not sure about it. You know what large crowds remind me of…"

He sighs and kisses my forehead, "Don't worry about it. This crowd is different because I'll be with you. I won't leave your side, no matter what."

I roll my eyes, "Alright."

He releases his arms from around me and grasps my hand. "Come on, it'll be fine."

He leads me out of my bedroom, which I feel I won't step foot in again. From there, it's the twists and turns of the various hallways to the front of the palace. We reach the front balcony where I can already hear the shouts of the people below. Even though they sound excited, my mind keeps picturing them into anger how I'm used to it. My grip on Atem's hand tightens as I'm trying to block out the sound. I must've looked pretty frightened because Atem glances at me with his look of concern, "Relax, it's okay." He says.

"S-sorry." I say, "I'm just not used to all of this."

"I can tell." He says glancing down at my hand which is pretty much suffocating his.

I loosen my grip enough to get his blood to circulate better, but still keep a firm grip on it. I take a few deep breaths, but it's hard to drown out the cheering. "I'm not sure if I can do this."

"Of course you can. Remember, I'm right here."

I sigh, "What do I need to do?"

"Just smile and give a wave here and there. They don't expect a lot from you."

"Alright…"

He leads me forward to the balcony and the more nervous I get. Shimon (one of the advisors) steps in front of us and faces the crowd below. He raises his arms in the air as everyone grows silent, "Citizens of Egypt!" he shouts. "I'm pleased to announce that your Prince has chosen a wife! May I introduce him and his bride!"

I guess that's our cue. Atem starts walking forward, which I follow. We walk into the sunlight and the roars from the crowd grow louder. They shout in happiness at us and wave their arms in our direction. I try to drown out the crowd as much as I can, but manage to let a smile crawl upon my face. Atem gives a few short waves, so I follow and give one or two. It's a lot more comfortable when he's around me.

After the announcement, Atem and I walk down to the throne room for the celebration. I still hold onto his hand rather tightly, which he doesn't seem to mind. "You did great out there." He says.

"Thanks." I say.

"Are you still nervous?"

"A little."

He leans over and kisses my cheek, "You still have nothing to fear. Got it?"

I nod as we approach the doors to the throne room. The giant doors remain shut, but I can still hear everyone inside talking and I can also hear hints of music. Atem pushes the doors open and the throne room is decorated quite nicely. There are flowers and ribbons hanging all around and the nobles inside are enjoying themselves dancing and eating. Everyone stops whatever they were doing and fall silent looking at us. It's really awkward, even when they start applauding us.

I turn toward Atem, which he glances toward me. He then leans into me and kisses me deeply. No matter how much I enjoy it, it's awkward in front of all of these people. Once his lips part from mine, everyone stops clapping and goes back to what they were doing. I glance toward Atem again about to question him, but he answers before I can ask, "It was expected of me."

"What do you mean?"

"Everyone expects us to do that in front of them."

I nod, "Seems like they just want to get into our business."

"Mhm."

Anyways, the celebration turned out perfect. Everyone was congratulating us and just made it feel more festive. Atem and I spend the entire celebration in each other's arms, mostly because I didn't want to be left alone. Once everyone begins to leave, Atem and I are the only ones left in the room.

He has his arms around me, and before I know it, he's holding me bridal-style in his arms. I smile at him as he does the same. "So tell me," He says, "How are you feeling?"

"I'm the happiest I've ever been." I say kissing him.


	14. Surprise

About another month or so has passed since the wedding. Atem and I couldn't be happier with our marriage. The nightmares are completely gone now. I'm too secure in Atem's strong arms. My torture seems to be coming to an end. Atem has been training more to become Pharaoh now that he's married and he should be able to become Pharaoh within a matter of months. I'm not really sure though. Apparently, his father made certain requirements for the timing of when he becomes Pharaoh.

Lately, I've felt pretty exhausted. Sometimes, just getting through my normal routine seems like twice as much work. I'd like to think it's because of stress, but I can't recall anything stressful lately. Atem doesn't notice my fatigue, so I never brought it up to him. I see no point in worrying him over nothing.

I lie in bed staring up at the ceiling. Atem has already left for his studies, so I guess he just didn't want to wake me. Atem's bedroom has currently become both of ours, which is obviously a bit more extravagant than my old bedroom, but still quite simple. It's different not waking up next to him, but I wouldn't call it lonely. I don't have anywhere important to be, so I continue to lie here.

After a while, a weird tingling hits my throat. I sit up to see if it'll go away. But it fails to. I swallow hard, but that only seems to increase my discomfort. Now it turns into a burning sensation. _What is going on? _I sit for another minute to see if it'll go away. Still nothing. It actually only seems to get worse. My breathing begins to now turn rapid, "Oh god-!" I say.

I jump out of bed and rush over to a vase in the corner. I vomit straight into it. _What is happening with me? _I've really never vomited before and usually when people vomit, that means they're sick. My body shakes from the recoil, and I lose my standing position so I now sit on the floor. The sickening smell gets into my nose and I vomit again into the vase. After sensing I won't vomit again, I wipe the saliva from my lips with the back of my hand.

I don't know what to do now. I doubt I have the strength to get out of the room and get help. I look up when I hear a knock at the door. _Yes, someone to help me! _A servant girl enters the room and sees me sitting on the floor weakly, "Ma'am, are you alright?" she asks.

"Go find Isis." I say.

She nods and quickly rushes out of the room. Isis is like the main healer among us, so hopefully she can help me. As I wait, I manage to muster the strength to get onto my feet and slowly walk over to the bed. I sit down on the edge of it and take a deep breath.

After a matter of minutes, Isis and the same servant girl comes into the room. I watch as the girl approaches the vase, picks it up, and leaves the room. "What's wrong, Zaria?" Isis asks.

"I-I don't know." I say, "I vomited twice. I-I don't know what's happening."

Isis begins to inspect me for any signs of sickness. She carefully examines me, but by the look on her face, I see no success. She sighs, "I don't understand it. You seem perfectly healthy."

There has to be some sort of explanation. People just don't vomit for no reason. "What about the Millennium Necklace?" I ask, "Will it tell you anything?"

Her eyes light up and she places her hands around the Necklace. She closes her eyes and begins to focus on it. The Necklace begins to glow, and then ceases. Isis' eyes are wide and now I'm worried. It sounds like something bad. "What is it?" I hesitantly ask.

Isis begins to slowly explain things to me and I feel like I want to cry.

~.~.~

I sit on the edge of the bed again, this time fully dressed. Isis left a while ago, and I'm still in shock. But for now, I should just be glad that I washed the taste of vomit out of my mouth. I'm not sure what I'll say to him. His reaction is too unpredictable. My body begins to shake at the very thought of it. I now hear the sound of the door close, but I don't look up.

Atem walks in front of me and crouches in front of me on the floor. My eyes glance up to meet his for a moment, but I now stare back at the floor. "Isis told me about what happened." He says, "Are you alright?"

I sigh, "I'm not really sure."

"Why, what is it?"

"Atem," I'm not sure how I should say this. I'm afraid to. It'll seem too real then. "I'm… pregnant."

Silence. He just sits there. I glance up at him and the next thing I know, I'm in Atem's arms. He picks me up and spins me around the room. The nausea threatens to return from this action, but I manage to keep it down. Atem's hands rest on my hips, while mine rest on his chest. He leans toward me and kisses me deeply. "That's… amazing!" he says, "We've been blessed with this!"

"Yeah…" I now stare back down at the floor.

"What's wrong?"

"It's just… I'm worried. I feel I might hurt the baby or worse…"

If I could hurt my parents, then I'm worried for my own child. Atem kisses me once again, "Don't worry about it right now."

"How could I not be worried? It's inside of me!"

"Zaria, I promise you nothing will happen. I'll be here to make sure of that. Please, let's just make this a happy moment."

I sigh, "Fine."

I've never envisioned myself becoming a parent for obvious reasons. Now that I think about it, I'm a little bit excited to have a child. But my fears are consuming that happiness. I suppose I should try to listen to Atem and try to just be happy about it. "Atem, I don't want to tell anyone about it yet." I say.

"Why?"

"I just don't want to speak too soon. Or get everyone excited over nothing."

He smiles, "If my wife wishes."

"Thanks."

Atem leans toward me and kisses me deeply once again, "I love you."

"I love you too."

He places his hand over my stomach and I can already feel the bump starting to spread across it, "Both of you." Atem adds.


	15. Concern

Atem's fingers slowly move and up and down my back. I hunch over the side of the bed as he sits next to me. It's another morning of sickness. I've been waking up Atem almost every morning with my nausea and vomiting. This process has been happening ever since I found out I was pregnant, which is almost three months. I hate waking Atem up this way, but he claims he doesn't mind it.

I'm a little bit more comfortable with the idea of the baby, but the worry is still taking over. The bump on my stomach has increased as well, for its now quite noticeable, but not _that_ noticeable. It seems the larger it gets, the sicker I get. One of the many reasons why the Priests have figured out about the baby on their own. It only took them about a month to figure it out with my vomiting and what not. At least we didn't have to go through the trouble of announcing it. But Atem and I have agreed to not announce it to the kingdom until the baby is actually born.

I'm starting to relax and recover from the nausea as Atem's fingers continue to move up and down my back. Both of us are obviously still in our nightclothes, as the sun is just starting to peak up. "Talk." I say, "I can't stand the silence."

More silence. I give him a moment to find something to talk about, but now it's a bit annoying. I look over at him as his hand stops moving on my back. He goes to meet my gaze, "I'm proud of you." He says.

"For what?"

"For going through all of this."

I smirk, "It's not like I have much of a choice."

"Perhaps, but I'm glad you're going through this so well."

I sigh, "If it'll please my husband, then I suppose I'm forced to go through it."

He smiles and kisses me. I put my hand over my stomach where the bump widely spreads across it. It's not real large for this stage, but the bump is obviously felt. As I move my hand across it, I can feel movement coming from the baby. I've been feeling it move for the past few days, and it'll take a little getting used to. Atem follows my gaze and places his hand next to mine, "Is the baby being active?"

I doubt he could feel it move from where his hand was, but judging by my hand, he could tell it was moving, "Yeah, a little bit." I say.

We sit there and I try to position his hand to see if he can feel it move, but maybe I'm the only one that can feel it currently, since the baby isn't _that _developed. We sit there until Atem gets up to get dressed to train for the day. I lie back down on the bed as I watch him walk into the washroom. He soon emerges again fully dressed and sits next to me, "I'll be back soon." He says kissing my forehead.

"Alright. I'm going to try and get some more sleep."

He nods and kisses me again. Atem soon gets up and leaves the room. I slowly close my eyes as I try to drift off to sleep.

~.~.~

_That dark cackling again. I got rid of him long ago. He shouldn't be here. I spin around to see him there, just as corrupt and ugly as always. "Get the hell away from me." I say._

_"I'm not here to harm you." Sokkwi says, "That's not my main purpose."_

_"Then why are you here? There's nothing left you can do."_

_"Wrong. There is tons of torture left to be felt."_

_Without him even moving, I'm already on the ground lying on my back. No matter what I do, I cannot get up. I look up to see Sokkwi standing above me, "You can't hurt me. I'm stronger than you!" I say._

_"Perhaps, you are. But… you aren't my victim today."_

_"What are you talking-?"_

_"Your child will pay for your sins."_

_The knife stabs right into my stomach. The blood flows as I scream. This time, the tears do not burn me. The knife moves through me and I finally feel it stab my child. I can feel the pain for the both of us. And I'm burning inside. Sokkwi laughs as I continue to yell for not only physical pain, but emotional as well. "Don't you realize it?" he says, "Nothing that relates to you will be safe! Even those with your blood are poisoned with your sins!" _

_He reaches down to my wound and takes something into his hands. It looks like the blank figure of an infant. It lacks features, which makes it even more horrifying. "Stop!" I shout, "Please!"_

_He laughs as he holds it above me and the blood from its body drips onto mine. The blood burns this time. The blood of my own child is tearing me apart. I continue to sob as Sokkwi drops the infant to the ground limply. Sokkwi's body disappears and I stare at the dead infant. I manage to pull myself onto my stomach and slowly crawl toward it. I'm now lying in front of it, until I see a pair of legs on the other side of the baby._

_I look up to see Atem standing there looking down at me. His eyes are shadowed, but I can still see the tears leaking down his cheeks. "So," he says, "This is what it's come to."_

_"Atem, please, it's not my fault!" I sob, practically shouting._

_"Yes… it is. Our child is dead because of your misdeeds. I can no longer accept you as my wife…"_

_"Atem, I-!"_

_"Shut up! I can't stand the sight of you. Enjoy Death with our child."_

_He slowly begins to walk away into the darkness leaving me with the baby. The blood pours from both of our bodies and the agony of everything melts my core._

"Zaria!" someone shouts, "Wake up! Wake up!"

I kick and scream against whoever is holding me down. I finally open my eyes to see Atem right above me. I shoot up into a sitting position and the tears brim my eyes. I clutch my stomach to make sure the baby is still there. Thank goodness it's still there. The sobbing comes next. Atem holds me in his arms as I cry into his chest. "What happened this time?" he asks.

"S-Sokkwi… killed… the baby." I stammer, "I could see the blood and everything. You… were there. You said I wasn't worthy of being your… wife because…. My sins killed it."

He holds my closer to him and his muscular arms around me tighten, "It's okay." He says calmly, "It's okay. We're okay."

"I-I… can't take this anymore. The n-nightmares are too much."

"He needs to pay."

"W-what?"

"Sokkwi is hurting you too much. Maybe I'd be better if he didn't live on this earth anymore."

I've never seen that part of him. _Would he really kill a man just because he hurts me mentally? _"D-don't. No matter how much I may hate him… you can't kill him. I've seen too much of that."

"Then how can I expect you to get better?"

"You can't. I feel even if he was gone, it wouldn't change anything. His soul would haunt me. I'll just have to learn to get over it."

He slowly nods and then kisses the top of my head, "If you think so."

"I'm positive."

He continues to hold me there for a while. I really owe him a lot for that. He's so different then he is in my nightmares, which I'm grateful for. "I'm scared." I say.

"About what?"

"Just… the baby. I'm happy about it, but there's too much that could go wrong. I'm worried that once it's born… the nightmares will increase."

Atem nods, "I'm just as scared as you. About the baby, I mean. The question whether I'll be a good parent, or how I'll be able to protect it is always on my mind."

"Then how do you deal with it?"

I know how though. It's because my life and torture has been a million times the amount as him. I can tell he was about to say something like that, but kept his mouth shut. "I… just have."

Plus, he has a lot more strength than I do. "Well, I'm sure you'll do fine. It's me I'm worried about."

He loosens the grip on me just enough to look down at me, "You shouldn't be. I'm sure you'll do great." He says ending his speech with a kiss.


	16. Gift

Time has come and went. My stomach seems to grow more and more each day. It's not nearly as large as other mothers would be at this stage, but still quite large. The baby should be due in about a month or so. Luckily, the ending months aren't as miserable as the first few. My sickness ended a while back, which sure made the thought of the baby slightly more joyful.

I've had a few nightmares, but nothing nearly as bad. Most of them had Sokkwi in them and involved the concept of the death of my child, but some of them I don't remember. When they are really bad though, I've been trying to control my screaming and sobbing.

I lie in bed and place my hand over my stomach. I didn't sleep much since I felt the baby constantly moving. But, that's nothing new. The sun has just started to rise, so Atem is still sleeping. I watch his bare chest rise and fall in a rhythmic, but yet slow pattern. I glance back toward my stomach as I feel another kick.

My eyes wander back to Atem to see his eyes starting to open. He then looks over at me, "Good morning." He says.

He props himself up and kisses my forehead, "Morning." I say.

"Sleep well?"

That's become a regular question lately, and I don't think I need to explain why. "Yeah."

He smiles, "I'm glad." Atem places his hand over my swollen stomach as the baby starts moving again, "Did the baby wake you up?"

"A few times."

He leans over and kisses my stomach, "Be nice to your mother next time." He whispers to it.

I can't help but laugh. I find him talking to the baby even more than I usually do, but I still find it amusing. The baby seems to have already earned his love from day one. Atem moves his hand over my stomach and keeps it there for a matter of moments. I chuckle, "Don't you have training to do?"

He sighs, "Unfortunately, yes."

He kisses my forehead and then walks over to the washroom. I prop myself into a sitting position and place my hands over my stomach as the baby starts moving once again. Most days, I end up lying in bed and napping, which I don't personally mind. Although, I do miss actually walking around and being able to get up for more than a few minutes at a time. I glance up to see Atem emerge from the washroom fully dressed. He sits down on the edge of the bed and kisses my forehead, "I'll be back soon." He says.

I nod, "I'll be here."

He smiles and places his hand over my stomach. He turns toward it, "Don't act up too much while I'm gone."

I smirk as he stands up again. He kisses me and then leaves the room. I sit there and just stare around the room. It's boring being here alone, but I forget that I'm not _completely _alone. I finally swing my legs over the edge of the bed and slowly walk toward the washroom. I undress and start bathing carefully. Once I'm finished, I just put my usual white dress on. I don't bother to put on any of the jewelry or anything though. Normally, I don't bother to change from my nightdress because I'm just sleeping the entire day anyway, but today, I feel like putting it on. I head back into the bedroom and lie back down on the bed.

I must've fallen asleep because I wake up when the sun is in a different position. I feel something brush the top of my head, so I tilt my head up to see Atem sitting next to me with his arm protectively around me, with his other stroking my hair. He seems to notice me looking at him because he looks back down at me, "Did I wake you?" he asks.

I shake my head, "No, if anything, you're relaxing me." I say.

He smiles, "Up for a walk?"

"Where to?"

He smirks, "It's a surprise."

I smile, "Fine, I'll go."

Atem smiles and gets off of the bed and stands up. I slowly sit up and then get myself off of the bed. I walk over to him and signal for him to lead the way, but he stays put. Before I object, he takes a step behind me and moves his hands over my eyes. "What's this for?" I ask. I can't help but silently laugh to myself.

"I told you; it's a surprise."

"You better make sure I don't trip over anything."

"Don't worry, you'll be fine."

He takes a step forward, which signals for me to start walking. He walks rather slowly, which is understandable, but makes me nervous about tripping over his feet. Atem leads me down the various hallways with a few turns here and there. Luckily, he doesn't take me down any stairs, or I'm sure I'd probably injure myself. Even with me being blinded at the moment, I can tell we're in a less crowded part of the palace, judging by the lack of people going down the halls.

Atem finally stops walking, "Don't open your eyes, alright?" he says.

"Okay." I say.

He removes his hands from over my eyes and I hear him take a step in front of me. It takes all the strength I can muster to not open my eyes though. Normally, I hate surprises, but I feel this one will be a bit more joyful. I hear the sound of a door open in front of me and Atem grabs my hand to lead my inside. I can tell the room is rather dark, but offers a little bit of light.

Atem closes the door and positions me a certain way in the room. His hand is still grasped in mine, "Alright Zari, open your eyes." He says.

_Finally! _I immediately open my eyes and begin the study the room. My eyes stop at one object in front of me though, "A crib?"

Atem nods as I walk up to it. It's made of a dark wood and feels rather glossy. Along the rim, is golden paint and the crib is already filled with soft white linens. There are a few scratches on it and isn't exactly perfect, but it's still beautiful. I run my hand across the rim as my other hand goes to my stomach, "Where did you get this?" I ask, "It's beautiful."

Atem smirks as he approaches me, "I made it." He says.

My eyes instantly widen. _He made this?! _I've never know him to use his hands to really do anything crafty. You'd think being the Prince would mean that he wouldn't have to do this kind of stuff. But I suppose that explains the scratch marks. Although, it does look quite professional. "That's… amazing! How did you do it?"

He shrugs, "It was just an idea. It was harder than I thought it would be though. I just thought our baby deserved to have something… unique."

I laugh, "It's still beautiful."

He smiles and puts his arms around me, "Just like you and our child."


	17. Life

The utter boredom. I just sit here and do absolutely nothing. The baby still won't be due for another month, but I want to give birth now. My eyes soon wander over to the crib that Atem made. It now lies in our bedroom next to our own bed. It's already afternoon and I'm still bored. I've already napped too, since I didn't get much sleep last night. I kept getting pain near my stomach, but I suppose the baby was just kicking really hard.

I reposition myself back on the bed and feel another small surge of pain. "Okay, calm down." I tell my stomach.

I look back up to see Atem now enter the room, "Did you say something?" he asks.

"It's nothing."

He sits down next to me on the bed and puts his arm around me. "How's the baby?"

"Active."

Another feeling of pain crosses over me and I clench my teeth together. I feel if I didn't then I'd end up yelping, which would only cause Atem to worry. But, he seems to notice my discomfort by the look on his face "Is it moving again?"

I nod, "Its kicking really hard."

"Maybe it's just excited to meet you."

I smile, "Most likely you than me."

He pulls me closer to him and rests his chin on the top of my head. He holds me there for a while and the entire time a smile crosses my lips. After a while, I hear a sigh escape from Atem. It's one of boredom, but more of frustration. "What is it?" I ask.

He looks down at me, "I have more training to do."

I frown. "You were just training the entire morning. What more could they possibly want you to do?"

He shrugs, "I don't know. But, I can't exactly object."

I sigh, "When?"

"Probably now. I'll see you soon, alright?"

"Fine."

He kisses me and then stands up and walks toward the door. He glances back at me and smiles, which I return before he leaves. I swear, his training schedule is starting to really annoy me. I sit in bed for a while and wait for Atem to return, but he doesn't. That same feeling of pain then comes over me again. This time, it seems worse than it was before. I clutch my stomach and wait for it to pass quickly, but it remains for a few more minutes. I swing my legs to the side of the bed and stand up. As much as I'd hate to, I'll have to go to the healers to see if they can figure out what's wrong. I slowly begin to exit the room and make my way down the hallways.

Once I'm almost there, the pain comes back more severely. I clutch my stomach and lean against the wall. No matter how hard I clutch my teeth together, it can't numb the pain. This time, I yell in pain. This grabs the attention of some servants roaming the hallways. One of them approaches me, "What's wrong, Ma'am?" she asks.

"Go… get the… healers." I say.

She quickly nods and runs down the hallway toward the healer's room. I try walking there myself as I wait for the healers to come, but the pain stops me. I keep trying to walk, but stop when I feel something drip down my legs. I look down to see a few drops of blood on the floor and I can't hide my gasp. _What the hell is happening? _Eventually, Isis and some of the other healers come running down the hallway, "W-what's happening with me?" I ask.

Isis glances down at the blood and looks about as worried as I am, "Zaria, I'm afraid you could be in labor." She says.

_L-labor? _"N-no! I-I'm not due for another m-month!"

"It's a rarity that this happens, but it's possible."

Two of the healers grab my arms and start leading me slowly down the hallway. I turn toward Isis as she walks behind us, "Go get my husband." I say.

She nods and runs off in another direction. As I keep walking, I notice I'm leaving a faint trail of blood behind me, but it doesn't really surprise me. It's just concerning. The servants finally lead me to what they call the 'birthing room', which is just a simple room with a large bed and a few things that the healers are supposed to use. They close the door behind us and lock it. As they lead me onto the bed, I hear someone pounding at the door. "Zaria!" I hear Atem yell through the door.

He continues to pound on the door, but the healers don't do anything. "Why aren't you letting him in?" I ask them.

"The father isn't supposed to be present for the birth." One girl says.

I can't hide my frown and anger, "But I need him here! He has to be with me!" I yell.

"Ma'am please calm down. You're going to put stress on the baby."

"Not until you let him in here!"

The pounding on the door finally stops. "Zaria, it's okay, I'll be right here for you." I hear Atem say, "I'll still be right with you."

I nod, but I can hear the pain in his voice. I still want him here, but no matter what, I know the healers won't let him in. I guess I should be glad he's at least here at all.

~.~.~

Many hours of pain and screaming and the sunlight has faded for today. My body has gone numb from the waist down, so that helps ease the pain. My fear over the baby has increased as well. When I gave birth moments ago, I didn't even hear the baby cry. One of the healers took the baby away even before I could see it. The door clicks open and I see Atem rush into the room. He rushes up to me and hugs me tightly. "Are you alright?" he asks.

"I'm alright." I say.

"Where's the baby?"

Tears start to brim my eyes and threaten to pour down my cheeks, "I-I don't know. They took it away right after I gave birth. It-it didn't even cry. I-!"

Atem leans toward me and kisses me softly, "I saw them take it away. They wouldn't let me see the baby though. I'm worried too… but we've got to have hope."

"Bu-but this is what I was afraid of! It's going to die!"

He kisses me again and places his hand on my shaken one, "I promise you it'll be alright."

I sadly nod, but want to think he's lying. The two of us wait in silence to see our child and I feel the nightmares will increase after this experience, whether it lives or dies. But, this scene often reminds me of how it was before Atem and I were married. He sits in a chair by my bedside, as I weakly lie in bed. I look up from my thoughts as I hear a knock at the door and the same servant that took our child comes in the room holding a bundle of blankets, "Sorry about that, but she's better now. Her health gave us quite a scare."

My eyes widen hearing it's a girl. I didn't care if it was boy or girl because to me, there's not much difference. The girl hands me my daughter and leaves the room. I look down at the baby to see she's smaller than most newborns would be, but still looks healthy. She silently lies in my arms and my heart melts. The thought of fear or my nightmares fades just by looking down at her. She keeps her eyes closed, but is still beautiful.

I notice on the top of her head, are a few short strands of blonde hair. It's a light blonde more like the shade of my bangs, instead of Atem's bangs. I run my finger along her cheek, which causes her to open her soft crimson eyes. I position her, so she can see Atem. His smile warms as he looks at her, "She's beautiful… like her mother." He says.

I smile at him. She looks a bit more like Atem than me, but still holds some small resemblances to me. "What should we name her?" I ask.

"I've never thought of that until now."

"You can at least help me though."

He nods as we think of names to fit our daughter. Most of the names I know belong to those that I hated, which obviously I don't want to name her after. And I wouldn't want to name her after one of my friends because she deserves her own identity. Atem finally looks up at me, "How about Layla?"

"Layla…" I say thinking it over. If I remember correctly, it means 'born at night' in Egyptian. It fits because it's already dark out, so she kind of was. "It's perfect for her."

"I love you." Atem says kissing me deeply.

"I love you too."


	18. Intrusion

The day has finally come. Atem and I will become Pharaoh and Queen. And Layla will finally be announced to the kingdom. It's been about a week since her birth, and I'm glad we finally have time to announce her with everything going on. Layla always keeps Atem and I happy and rarely cries during the night unlike most newborns, but when she does, Atem always insists on taking care of it.

I've gotten a few nightmares, but they're not as horrible. Luckily, I don't remember most of them. I think I may be getting better. But, when I do remember the torture in them, Atem is always there to comfort me. I wake up wrapped safely in Atem's muscular arms. His cheek rests on the top of my head, while I lie on his shoulder. By the way he's holding me I can tell he's already awake. "Good morning." He says kissing the top of my head.

I lift my head so I can look into his eyes, "Morning." I say kissing him.

He smiles and starts running his fingers through my hair. I smile back and continue to lie against him. "Sleep well?" he asks.

I nod, "With you here, yes."

He smirks and kisses me again. He releases me from his arms and walks over to Layla's crib where she's sleeping. He picks her up gently and carries her over to the bed. He sits down on the bed and looks softly down at her. He seems to melt every time he sees her, but then again, so do I. I sit up in bed next to him and watch Layla slowly open her eyes. Her crimson eyes look softly up at us, causing the two of us to smile. I rest my head against Atem's shoulder as he runs his finger along Layla's cheek, making her give an attempted smile. "Are you nervous about today?" I ask him.

He sighs, "I'm not sure. It's a mix of feelings."

I nod. Realizing that the announcement will happen soon, the two of us get up and start getting ready. As Atem starts getting dressed, I take Layla into the washroom to bath her myself. I don't allow the servants to really do much with her. I don't want my daughter to experience any of the torment I've felt at the hands of careless people. I finish bathing her and take a towel and gently rub it across her skin, causing her to stir a bit. Once she's done, I hand her over to Atem and start getting dressed myself. There are really no changes to my outfit now that I'm Queen, except that I wear a golden headband around my head.

Atem hands Layla back to me as he finishes wrapping her in a blanket. The two of us start walking down to the main balcony and eventually make it there to hear the roaring crowds below. Shimon stands by the balcony, but not directly in front of it. After a few moments, Shimon approaches us, "Your Majesties, are you ready?" he asks.

I glance toward Atem to see him nod, "Yes, we are." He says.

I hand Layla back over to him as the two of us walk out onto the balcony. The crowd roars even louder at the sight of both of us. I've trained myself to ignore the sounds of the crowd by now. Shimon walks in front of us and addresses the crowd, "My fellow Egyptians! May I present your new Pharaoh and Queen, along with their heir!"

Shimon steps off of the balcony as Atem holds up Layla to the crowd. She smiles up at everyone as they bow to the three of us.

Afterwards, Atem and I hand Layla over to a servant to take her back to our room and watch her until the celebration is over. I'm hesitant about handing her over, but Atem keeps assuring me it's okay. The two of us walk hand-in-hand to the throne room. Once we enter, everyone inside bows to create a pathway leading up to the throne. We approach it and Atem sits upon the throne as I stand to his left, while Shimon is to his right. The Priests and everyone else still bow in silence until Seto stands up and faces the crowd, "All hail the new Pharaoh and his Queen! May the gods and goddesses of our land bless them. Now, let the celebration commence!"

Everyone cheers in joy and begins to enjoy themselves. It's the same as the party of our wedding, except this one is slightly less extravagant. It's pretty boring just watching everyone though. And me standing up doesn't really help either.

After a while, a weird feeling comes over me. It's as if this dark presence keeps growing closer and closer to the palace. It's not a presence I've felt before, which makes it a bit more alarming. I notice Atem glance up at me, "Are you alright?" he asks.

I snap from my thoughts and look at him. I guess I was showing my concern, which he obviously noticed. "It's nothing." I say.

He nods and turns back toward the celebration. My eyes scan around the room and stop on Isis. I notice the Millennium Necklace glows for a moment and then she whips around to look up, "QUICK!" she shouts, "MAHAD!"

Mahad glances up and moves his white cape to block something that seems to have gone in our direction. I watch the item drop to the ground and now I can see it's a dart. Everyone around the room notices and starts running around in a panic. "Guards, after that man!" Seto shouts pointing to the upper level of the throne room.

My eyes watch a man run across the upper level and then collapse at the hands of two of the guards. They drag him along and then kneel him before us. The criminal doesn't even look frightened, but rather has a mysterious blank stare on his face, almost angry even. "How dare you try and make an attempt at the Pharaoh's life!" Isis shouts to the criminal.

"Guards, put him in the dungeon." Mahad says.

"No, I have a better idea." Seto smirks, "Let us remind our Majesties of all of our power. This man shall be put under a Millennium Trial!"

The Priests nod in agreement and send a few guards to bring a sealing tablet forth. Shada steps up first to the man and begins to read him with the Millennium Key. The Key glows and then soon ceases, "We are correct." Shada says, "A Creature of Chaos lives deep within his heart."

By this time, the guards have already returned with the tablet and finish putting it into place. Aknadin steps up next and begins to extract the Creature from the man's heart. A dark aura forms around the man as he yells as the Creature is lifted from his body. Seto finishes using the Rod to seal the monster into the stone tablet. Seto smirks to himself and then faces the guards, "Put this tablet in the sanctuary." He demands, "Also, let this man walk free. We no longer have any use for him."

They nod and carry the man out of the room, along with the tablet. Everyone around the room comes out of hiding and murmurs amongst themselves. The rest of us stand in silence. Shimon now leans toward Atem, "My Pharaoh," he whispers, "I think it wise to continue the celebration. We wouldn't want everyone to keep within a state of panic."

Atem nods and signals for the celebration to continue. It takes a moment, but everyone soon goes back to enjoying themselves. No matter how well everyone else is feeling, I just feel… uneasy. It's like I can feel another attack might come. I notice Atem look up at me, "You're in a daze again." He says. I don't say anything, but rather keep staring. He places his hand on top of mine, causing me to look at him.

"I… want to check on Layla." I say, "It's not my place to leave, but I just…"

"Go. It's alright."

I nod and am about to step away, but I hear a yell up ahead. I glance up to see a guard collapse at the front of the room. I look up to see a man walk into the room, making me take a step back. He slowly walks into the room and cackles evilly. He has long white hair, a scar over his right eye, wears a red cloak, black robes around his bottom half, and a few pieces of gold jewelry. By the look of the man, and the jewelry, the gold looks like it was stolen. At the sight of the man, everyone falls into another panic and escapes the throne room. The Priests, Atem, and I are the only ones left. "Who are you?" Atem asks the man.

"So, we finally meet… Pharaoh." The man says, "My followers refer to me as the King of Thieves, but you may call me Bakura. And look at that… all the Millennium Items are brought forward. Give them to me now. I must possess these treasures of darkness."

"Fool." Aknadin says, "Someone evil like you would not be able to lay a finger on these Items. The moment you touch it, you'll be burned to death."

"Well, I must say that excites me."

"In that case, let the Millennium Items invoke death upon you!" Seto says.

"Stop being naïve. Your lives aren't my concern, it's only the Items. Give them to me immediately. In exchange, I'll give you these back!" Bakura tosses various gold ornaments from his cloak onto the ground on front of him.

"No… that couldn't be.." Aknadin mutters.

"In that case, I bring another souvenir." Bakura puts his fingers to his lips and begins to whistle. This causes a horse to run into the room with something attached to its back. The horse swings around causing the item to glide over next to Bakura. Bakura stomps down onto the item, which I now recognize as a sarcophagus. "Say hello to your previous Pharaoh!"

"Damn you… how dare you lay your hands on the Pharaoh." Seto says.

_Would that mean that the sarcophagus holds King Aknamkanon? _I'd say so. That means that is Atem's father. I glance toward Atem to see his face hard and his hands bunched into fists. "We will never forgive you!" Seto shouts, "Guards, bring us a sealing tablet at once!"

They position a tablet next to Bakura, making him smirk. "Be careful." Karim says, "The movements of the Millennium Scale… we don't know the extent of his dark aura."

"The Eye sees it as well." Aknadin says, "His soul contains an immense power, similar to the void of darkness."

Shada lifts the Key into the air, "Millennium Key, allow me to gaze within his soul!" The Key starts to glow and Shada takes a step back panting, "The Ka of this man is enormous. This stone tablet is too small for it!"

"Impossible!" Seto says, "This petty thief's Ka cannot be stronger than that of our Queen!"

I can sense it though. Whatever Bakura's Ka is, it's stronger than Ounouti. Bakura begins to laugh in a corrupt way and his Ka appears from his body. It's a large grey figure that strongly built, with small wings, and its bottom half resembling a snake. All the Priests, including myself, take a step backwards. "What's wrong?" Bakura smirks, "You're scared of my Diabound?"

Seto regains himself and steps forward, "The power of the Millennium Items will diminish it." He says, "Millennium Rod… seal this monster!"

The Rod sends a white light at Diabound, making it turn into an orb and float toward the tablet. The carving of Diabound appears upon the tablet, but I know it's not that easy. "Oh young Priest, that monster will only return to life." Bakura says. The stone tablet starts to crack and then shatter. Diabound is released again. "Tablets are useless against my Diabound!"

"We must show the true power of the Priests!" Aknadin says.

Seto lifts his DiaDhank into the air, "Come forth, Galestgoras! Now go. Attack Diabound!"

Galestgoras goes to attack Diabound, but a bright light blocks its attack. In the place of the light comes a bird-like man creature. It sends an attack toward Galestgoras and destroys it. "How did you summon that creature?" Mahad asks, "You do not possess a tablet shrine!"

Bakura laughs, "Have you forgotten?" he says. "I found a nifty tool when I paid a visit to King Aknamkanon's tomb. This!" he lifts up his sleeve to reveal… a DiaDhank!

"That's the DiaDhank of King Aknamkanon!" Isis says.

"Correct. King Aknamkanon's tomb is filled with stone tablets!"

"Are you saying you're summoning monsters directly from his tomb?" I speak up.

"Disgracing the tomb of the holy Pharaoh is unforgivable!" Aknadin says.

"Don't make me laugh!" Bakura shouts, "What 'holy Pharaoh'? Aknamkanon was the one who created the Millennium Items you possess! And the one who made the dark powers come to this world!"

"That's not true! Aknamkanon was the one who saved this country and restored peace to this kingdom! Wishing that the prosperity could last forever, we kept the Items."

"Yes, he destroyed the demons of our kingdom." Seto says, "He has restored peace and justice to this land for many years."

"Peace and justice?" Bakura says, "I think not. It's true that the owners of the Millennium Items have tremendous strength, but that power reflects the dark side of their personality. You may not be aware of it, but those who return the Items to Kul Elna will obtain the power of Darkness. The power of the gods will come to my hands."

"You lie." Aknadin says, "Insulting our Items is like insulting us. Priests, we must use the power of our creatures to win this!"

The Priests nod and summon their ace monsters such as Battle Ox, Bastet, Spiria, Zelua, Gadius, and Illusion Magician. Illusion Magician attacks and destroys the creature that was Aknamkanon's original monster, "Diabound, finish them!" Bakura commands.

Diabound sends one attack out, which destroys every single monster. This is just horrible to watch. Bakura has been here long enough. I'm sick of him. I step forward and step among the other Priests, making them look at me questionably, "My Queen, don't!" Mahad says.

"Yes, we shall fight in your place!" Seto says.

I shake my head, "I'm fighting." I say, "I may not win, but I'm going to at least try." I hold up my DiaDhank, "Ounouti, assist me!"

Bakura laughs mockingly, "Hmph, you think you'll defeat me with a creature like _that?" _he says, "Diabound, show her what your true power is like!"

Diabound charges up an attack and fires, but Ounouti dodges it. She then fires a blast of her own at Diabound, which lands a direct hit. Diabound looks injured, as does Bakura, but they're nowhere near on the verge of losing. "You're a feisty one, aren't you?" Bakura says, "What a foolish quality. Diabound, end her this time!"

Diabound fires another attack, which Ounouti goes to dodge, but the attack soon collides with her. I watch as she's destroyed and feel myself come to the ground. My body is shaking from the impact. I feel like I can't feel any part of my body. The Priests surround me and try to come to my aid, but Atem rushes past them and comes up to me. "Are you hurt?" he asks.

I feel like I lack the strength to speak. A portion of my soul feels like its left me. I try to muster up my strength and answer, but before I do, Atem gets up and turns to Bakura, "How dare you Bakura!" he shouts, "You've harmed my family… my friends! You'd stood on the deceased and shamed the living, and for that, you will pay!"

"If you really care that much for the dead, then fine, take it." Bakura says shoving the sarcophagus in front of Atem.

Atem stares in shock at the sarcophagus and kneels next to it. I watch as he goes from a pained expression, to a sudden realization. He looks in shock and I wonder what just happened to him. "Pharaoh, you've stalled for too long!" Bakura says, "Diabound, kill them all!"

"It won't be easy Bakura!" Atem shouts, "You'll have to go through me first! And… I have the power of the gods with me!" _The gods? _No… is it true? Is he really… _that _Pharaoh? "I now call upon this god by his name! Come out, almighty Obelisk! Kneel before one of the gods!"

I watch as a bright light shoots from the sky and comes above Atem. The light transforms into a giant blue creature with piercing red eyes. _It's a god… he must be the Chosen Pharaoh. _Obelisk collides with Diabound and creates another blinding light. Both are sent backwards and Diabound crashes into the wall, while Obelisk remains standing. Both creatures then return to their respective DiaDhanks over their loss of energy. However, I notice Bakura wipe blood from the corner of his mouth, "Pharaoh, let's postpone this battle for another time." He says, "But be warned, all of the Millennium Items will soon be mine! Later!"

Bakura turns around and gets onto his horse and rides out of the throne room. "Don't let him escape!" Aknadin shouts.

I get up onto my feet and want to chase after him, but I know I won't catch up with him. But, without warning, I start running. I'm not sure where my feet are taking me exactly, but I now find myself at the main balcony. I gasp at what I see. Destruction, flames, pain. From here, I watch Bakura ride off on his horse. _He'll pay. _"It's awful…"

I turn around to see Atem standing behind me watching the city in horror, as I am. I sadly nod, "This thing has gotten out of proportion before its begun." I say.


	19. Rebirth

I hold Layla in my arms as I stand atop one of the various balconies in the palace. Atem leans far over the balcony and studies everyone below. Mahad recently volunteered for the task of returning King Aknamkanon to his tomb, so that's where he's going. I watch as he leads the way for the guards below, who push along a cart that holds the sarcophagus. The only thing making this slightly less depressing to watch is Mana. She's currently trying to yell at Mahad below to let her go with him, but Shimon is trying to convince her otherwise.

Once Mahad and the others are out of sight, Atem turns toward me. "I still have another meeting to go to." He says, "Go back to our room, I'll be there soon."

I nod. I've been staying in our bedroom all day watching Layla out of protection. There's still no news of Bakura, but it's only been a day. Unfortunately, he could be anywhere. "Mana," I glance up at Atem to see him turn toward her, "Could you accompany Zaria?"

She looks up and smiles, "Sure!" she says.

I suppose it's just another matter of protection. I start heading down the hallways and stare down at Layla. Her eyes droop down and then tiredly open again. She still fails to fall asleep though. "So," Mana starts, "How's the Prince-?"

"Pharaoh." I correct.

"Oops! Right." She giggles and I can't help but chuckle a bit myself, "How's the Pharaoh dealing with… everything?"

I sigh, "I don't know. He's obviously devastated that Bakura did that to his father, but he's kept quiet about it."

"Oh."

We continue to walk in silence until Layla yawns and starts moving her arms around. "Aww, she's so cute!" Mana exclaims.

"Well, she is the daughter of the Pharaoh." I chuckle.

The two of us finally get to Atem and my bedroom, so we halt at the door. "I'll see you later Mana." I say.

"Yeah. See ya!"

I watch her head back down the hallways as I enter the bedroom. I set Layla down in her crib and watch as she slowly begins to fall asleep. I turn away after a moment and go out onto the balcony. In the distance, the recovering Imperial City waits. The fires have been put out last night, but the damage and scorched property still remain. It's depressing to watch from here and I can't imagine what it's like for the people down there. I'm awoken from my thoughts when a pair of arms wrap around my waist, causing me to jump. Atem chuckles quietly, "It's only me." He says.

"Sorry, you just scared me." I say. I don't turn around to face him, but rather continue staring at the city.

Atem rests his chin on my shoulder as we stare out the balcony in silence. "How are you?" I ask.

His turns his head slightly, "What do you mean?"

"How are you doing with everything? What with… your father, and all."

He sighs, "I'm alright."

I now turn around to face him, but am still wrapped in his arms. By his tone, I can tell he's saying the truth, but yet, I can also hear the stress in it as well. "But," Atem continues, "I'm just glad my father will be put back to rest and be protected more securely."

I nod. "Well, I'm glad you're doing good." I say.

A small smile slips across his face, "You shouldn't worry about me, Zari. Besides, having you here already makes me feel at peace."

I smile as I kiss him deeply.

~.~.~

I wake up as sweat drips from my face. I sit up and wipe the sweat from my face as I recall my memory. That dream. It felt _too _real. It was nothing compared to the other nightmares I've had but it was still… horrible. I glance to my left to see that Atem isn't sleeping, or actually _in bed_. I glance around and notice a shadow coming from the balcony. I slowly get out of bed and quietly walk past Layla, who is soundly asleep. I walk over to the balcony to see Atem standing at the edge of it staring up at the sky in his nightclothes. "Is there a reason you're up?" I ask.

He turns around to face me, "Did I wake you?" he asks.

I shake my head as I walk up to him. He turns back toward the night sky as I place a hand on his shoulder. "What woke you up?" Atem asks.

I sigh, "Just a… bad dream."

He turns toward me now, "How bad?"

"Not nearly as bad as the others. But it was still deadly."

"Who died?"

"…Mahad. Bakura killed him."

His eyes widen, "I had the same dream."

_Could it be coincidence? Or is Mahad really in danger? _Just as I think that I look toward the wedge shrines to see Mahad's is glowing. _This can't be good, _"I'm going to find some answers." Atem says.

"I'll go too."

"No, you stay here. If this gets bad, then I'll have to search for Mahad."

"No, I'm going too. Bakura might be there."

"That's exactly why you shouldn't go."

"I'll be alright. And even if you don't let me go, I'll go anyways."

Atem sighs, "Fine. Just try to be careful, alright?"

I nod. The two of us walk back inside the bedroom and start to quickly get dressed into our normal attire. I find someone to watch Layla for a time and Atem and I head to the tablet shrines near the back of the palace. We finally reach Mahad's shrine to find everything is in order so far. We climb the steps onto the altar until we see someone standing there, "Mana?" I ask.

"Oh, hi guys." She says sadly. It's unusually not seeing her perky personality.

"Why are you here?" Atem asks.

"I don't know. I just… had this really weird dream that Master Mahad was in danger. I came here hoping to see if I could help in some way."

"Us too." I say.

I look up and notice one of the tablets along the wall begins to flash, "Oh no!" Mana says, "That's Mahad's Illusion Magician! Ah! The tablet cracked!"

"Mahad's in serious danger now." Atem says, "Come on, we're going out to find him."

The three of us exit the shrine and head to the palace stables. Atem grabs a horse, while I grab my own. The two of us hop onto ours, while Mana jumps up behind Atem. We begin to ride through the desert, but so far, find nothing. "Ooh, where could Mahad be?" Mana wonders in worry, "I wish we had a way of knowing."

Just then, to our right comes a large blue bolt of lightning off in the distance. "That's the Magician's Training Grounds." Atem murmurs, "Come on, he must be there!"

We ride off in that direction to find a canyon where the training grounds are located. Down there, are a small group of our soldiers fighting off a cloaked demonic looking army. I suppose the army is supposed to belong to Bakura by the looks of them. We approach the figures and Atem grabs a sword sticking out of the ground and begins to fight the cloaked army off. I guide my horse through the army and approach a soldier waiting by some sort of cave, "Where is Mahad?" I ask, "Is he here?"

"Yes, my Queen." The soldier says, "He is battling Bakura, inside the cave."

Atem and Mana now come into earshot to hear this. Mana jumps off of the horse as Atem goes off to fight more of the army. I jump down from my own horse and watch. He and the soldiers are badly outnumbered. I turn toward Mana, "Is there any way you can send for backup?" I ask.

She nods and puts her fingers to her lips and whistles loudly. A falcon comes into view and swoops down onto Mana's shoulder. She takes a small piece of paper, scribbles something down on it, and gives it to the falcon, "Take this to the palace." She says.

The falcon flies off in the direction of the palace. A feeling now comes over me. I feel something coming from the Millennium Ring inside the cave. It's strange. The earth now begins to rumble violently and I wonder what's going on. I look behind me to see Bakura's army fleeing the area. This isn't good. I look up to the top of the cave to see a stone tablet sitting there.

It begins to collapse from the cave, causing me to run backwards and grab Mana's wrist to get her away also. The tablet collapses to the ground along with the cave, causing dust to fly up into the air. The dust starts to clear a bit and Atem rides on his horse toward us. He jumps off and runs up to Mana and I. He wraps his arms around me, "Are you alright?" he asks.

"We're fine." I say.

The dust now completely clears and I look up at the stone tablet. It has a carving upon it which is… the Illusion Magician. Except, it looks different. Tears begin to well up in Mana's eyes and she collapses next to the tablet, "No, no, no!" she cries, "Master Mahad, you can't die! Come back!"

I glance to Atem to see shock written on his face and he looks defeated. Mahad… you can't be dead. But, I can feel something coming from the tablet. It's almost as if something inside it is alive. But why?


	20. Chase

He's too distant. Standing on the balcony staring out blankly. I've tried to comfort him a few times, but he's only pushed me away. Atem has stood there all day in silence. The day is even coming to a close, for the sun is setting. I watch him carefully from the bedroom. I hold Layla in my arms as she playfully moves her arms around and stares up at the ceiling. I flash a smile toward her, but I'm actually worried about Atem. I set Layla down in her crib because I know she'll nap soon.

I look to the balcony again to now see Atem's fists against the railing of the balcony. Mahad's destruction has really affected him. Although, Isis claims he's not dead. She says he was merely reborn into another form of life merged with his Illusion Magician, and refers to the new creature as the Dark Magician. But, Atem still remains saddened. I suppose losing one of his best friends is just too much for him to handle. _I mind as well stop stalking him. He's made it clear he wants to be alone. _

I start to walk away toward the doorway when I hear Atem's voice, "Don't go." He says.

I turn around to see that he hasn't stopped staring out the balcony. I cautiously approach him and now stand a distance behind him. "What is it?" I ask. He doesn't answer, "Atem, maybe it's best if you _are _alone for a while."

"What?" he says glancing toward me.

"I'm just saying… maybe you need to be alone. What you just said was one of the first times you've talked to me all day."

"Fine," he spits back, "Leave. It won't make a difference anyway. At least you'll be happy with that decision."

_Why is he doing this? _"Don't take your anger out on me."

He now turns his head toward me and grunts, "If you want me to be alone than leave. Just abandon me."

"I'm not going to argue with you. You're acting childish."

Now I've done it. I can see the anger within him rising just by watching his muscles tense. "I'm being childish?" he says. _Here it comes. I haven't argued with him in a while, but I know how he acts. _"You know nothing of the way I feel! Mahad is dead and you're expecting me to be happy about it?"

"I didn't say…"

"No. You just don't care. You don't care about the way I or anyone else feels! You're only caring for yourself. So go. Leave me alone like you so wished."

I haven't seen him this angry in so long. The pressure is getting to him, but he doesn't have to act this way. I shut my eyes to fight back my sadness and when I open them, I see Atem's muscles relax and he looks regretful. I don't care though. I didn't deserve that. I turn away from him, "Fine." I say, "I'll leave you in solitude. Like you said, I don't care."

I notice that my voice is starting to crack. But, with that, I run out of the room as fast as I can. I slam the door behind me and lean against it. I shut my eyes to fight back the tears. No, I won't cry. He wanted me out and he made it clear. I shouldn't care. I take a deep breath and start wandering the hallways. Everything is dark at this hour, but the darkness is almost relaxing. I find myself in the garden and I look up at the sky. As I gaze up at it, I find a cloud of dust rising in the air from off in the distance.

I run through the hallways and know what lies in that direction. I now look at the tablet shrines to find Aknadin's looks cracked. I run out there and head to his shrine. I open the doors to find things in order so far. From the risen altar, I can hear a muffled groan. I climb the steps and find Aknadin lying on the ground with blood coming from the Millennium Eye. "A-Aknadin?" I ask, "What happened?"

He doesn't answer. He actually just lies there with his eyes closed like he's living in some sort of nightmare. Aknadin continues to groan and I wonder what's happening to him. "I'll go get help." I tell him, "Alright, Ak-?"

I stop when I turn around to see a familiar man standing a distance away from me. Bakura. "Heheh…" he says, "Fancy seeing you here."

I'm actually almost terrified to be face-to-face with him. Alone, for that matter. But, I try to mask it. "Well, I guess I shouldn't be surprised." I say, "You did this to Aknadin."

Bakura chuckles, "My, how very observant. How long did it take you to figure that out?"

I roll my eyes, "Why are you here?"

"What other purpose?" I notice he's running with fingers across a golden pendant hanging from his neck. The Millennium Ring!

"You stole that from Mahad."

"Hmm, I wouldn't use the term _steal. _Actually, I prefer the word _appropriate._"

I roll my eyes. This guy makes me sick. I notice that Bakura starts to take a few steps closer to me, which makes me back away. Now I'm literally backed into a corner. Bakura steps closer to me until his face is right in front of mine. I'm horrified. "Ah, I've got it." He says, "I think I've found a purpose for you."

"Which is?" I try to control the shaking in my voice.

Without warning, Bakura grasps my throat. I reach for his hands to let go, but his grip is too strong. I can feel my lungs losing air and my only thought is for someone to help me. _Somebody help, I'm dying! _"Bakura!"

With that, Bakura releases my throat, causing me to gasp for air. I look over to see Shada standing near the entrance. Bakura smirks, "Well, I think it's time to take my leave. Diabound!" I wonder why he's calling for an attack when there's nothing there. But now, I can see it. Out from the darkness, comes Diabound. It can turn invisible?! Diabound sends an attack down at the ground, causing dust to fly into the air. I notice Bakura's figure now turn back toward me, "And you're coming with me!"

~.~.~

I slowly open my eyes to find myself standing. _Damn Bakura, he must've knocked me out. _I notice that someone's arms are around my neck and I instantly recognize that they belong to Bakura. One of his hands, however, has a knife held against my throat. I also see that I'm standing atop a cliff. Below, I can see Atem, Seto, and Karim, all on horses. "Leave her out of this, Bakura!" Atem shouts.

Bakura laughs, "What? I can't have a little fun?" he says, "Oh, and look, the Queen is finally coming to!"

"Bakura..!"

"Relax, Pharaoh. She won't die, but you will! Diabound, make yourself known!"

Diabound emerges from the shadows and fires a blast toward a giant red dragon in midair. The dragon resembles one of the Egyptian Gods. The blast hits the creature and burns away its top half, causing the rest of it to blow up. I watch as Atem hunches over in pain and clutches his body. "Stop it, Bakura!" I shout.

This causes the knife to now go against my skin. The knife is just seconds away from cutting through my flesh. Just seconds away from death. "Hmph, perhaps I've caused enough damage." Bakura says, "Pharaoh!" Atem looks up at him, "We must continue our battle elsewhere! I'll be waiting in the village of Kul Elna. If you don't show, then the body pileup will be on your hands!"

"Bakura!" Atem says.

"Oh, and don't worry. I no longer have a use for the Queen." Bakura releases me from his grasp and the knife pulls away from my throat, "Take her."

Bakura shoves me forward, causing me to stumble and fall from the cliff. Thank the gods that it's not a very long fall. I put my arms up to shield my face as I hit the ground. I hear Bakura's horse ride away as I watch Atem run up to me. I get up into a sitting position and I notice my body is still shaking. Atem wraps his arms around me and kisses me, "Oh, thank the gods!" He says, "You're not hurt, are you?"

I shake my head, "N-no."

"I'm so sorry. I'm sorry for snapping at you earlier."

"It's alright. I knew you were frustrated."

"No, it's not alright. You didn't deserve me to snap at you. Now, I can't imagine if anything happened to you."

~.~.~

I sit down on my bed and watch Atem pace back and forth around the room. He now turns to me with a serious expression on his face. "You're not serious, are you?" I ask.

"I am." He says, "Bakura has spread too much blood so far. And he almost killed you. That's unforgivable. I have to go to Kul Elna and face Bakura alone."

My face flushes, "It's too dangerous."

"It'll be even more dangerous if I don't go. Please Zaria, I need to go."

I stand up and tightly hug him, "A-alright, just promise to come back safe."

"I will." He says kissing me.


	21. Betrayal

Atem already left. Late last night he just walked out. It's now morning and I find myself pacing. I realize it takes a while to get to Kul Elna, but I'm still worried. I look up as I hear Layla start to cry. I head over to the crib and pick her up. I start to change her and once I'm finished, I hold her in my arms. I smile down at her causing her to attempt a smile of her own. _Atem you better come back unharmed. Our daughter needs a father._

The Pendant from around my neck now begins to glimmer. But, I feel an uneasy presence coming from another Millennium Item. Atem must be in danger. I immediately set Layla down in her crib and run out of the room. I head down the hallways and enter the throne room where all the remaining Priests stand. "What is it, my Queen?" Isis asks.

"The Pharaoh is in danger." I say, "I'm going to Kul Elna to find him."

"Then let us accompany you." Seto says, "It is our job to protect our King and his Queen."

I sigh, "Alright."

The Priests and I run down to the stables and each grab a horse. A group of soldiers also accompany us. From there, we begin our journey to Kul Elna. Once we arrive, I'm not even sure that this is a city. The entire thing is completely sabotaged. What is actually left of the village is just various walls of once buildings. There's an ominous cloud of dust around the area and as we head through the village, there are skeletons lying around the area. "I was informed that this village was once filled with tomb robbers, but one day, they just vanished." Shada informs.

I can feel an evil presence lingering around the village. It's almost lust-filled. But the real question is; where are Bakura and Atem at? "AAAHH!"

I turn around to see a soldier fall from his horse and hit the ground. He opens his eyes and a pair of skeleton arms rise from the ground and tries to break his neck. The soldier luckily gets away at the last second. Tons of skeletons wielding weapons begin to rise from the earth and the undead army slowly approaches us. The soldiers jump down from their horses and begin to fight them off, but more skeletons keep appearing. Shada then jumps off of his horse and brings out his DiaDhank, "Two-Headed Jackal Warrior!" he says as its summoned, "Attack!"

"My Queen, we will fight." Seto says, "You go find the Pharaoh!"

I nod and ride off farther into the village. I look around and then jump off of my horse. The Pendant flashes now and seems to be leading me in another direction. I head to my left and see an opened bunker leading to a stairwell going underground. I can hear voices coming from down there, so I cautiously begin to head down the steps.

As I make my way down the stairs, an explosion happens from down the steps. I almost stumble over, but I manage to clutch onto the wall. Once I regain myself, I head down the stairs and reach a dark underground chamber that's dimly lit by a few torches. I can now see them. Atem sits weakly on the ground while Bakura stands in front of some kind of tablet that's on an altar. I notice Diabound hovers above Bakura, but it looks different, mutated even. Then I see a magician-like creature next to Atem. It wears a purple cloak and I recognize it as the creature carved on the tablet Mahad was sealed within. Diabound begins to charge an attack in its palms, so I take the offensive. I raise my DiaDhank into the air, "Ounouti, defend the Dark Magician!" I say.

She immediately appears and blocks the attack from hitting Mahad. This causes Atem and Bakura glance over to me while I run up to Atem an hug him. "What are you doing here?" he asks.

"I sensed you were in danger." I say, "The Priests and I came to help."

"How touching." Bakura interrupts, "I think I might vomit."

I ignore him and look back toward Atem. My eyes go down to his chest, "Where's the Millennium Puzzle?"

I watch as the muscles on Atem's face tighten, "Bakura has it."

I glare toward Bakura as he smirks back at me. I stand up again and continue to glare at him, "Bakura, I have revenge to take on you. Not only for taking the Puzzle and the Ring, but also for trying to kidnap me. So, let's finish our fight."

Bakura chuckles, "Heheheh…. Very well. If you insist. Diabound, destroy her monster!"

Diabound charges its attack in its arms and Ounouti goes to counter with a blast of her own. The two blasts hit each other, but Diabound's attack quickly overpowers Ounouti's , but luckily she dodged it in time. Diabound goes to fire another attack, but once it goes to hit Ounouti, a sword comes into view and blocks it. I turn around to see Seto's monster Duos hovering there and then the rest of the Priests, except for Shada and Aknadin, come into the room. "Your Majesties!" Seto says, "Are you alright?"

"Yes." Atem says.

"Mystical Elf, come forth!" Isis calls.

An elf creature appears and begins to chant a spell. Specks of shiny particles begin to rain from the ceiling and Atem gets back up onto his feet. "Fantastic." Bakura says, "The other Millennium Items have arrived."

"Be silenced Bakura!" Seto says, "We shall defeat you, and you know it."

"If that's what you think."

"Come out, Curse of Dragon!" Karim says.

Now we have five monsters to go against Diabound. "Diabound, destroy their monsters!" Bakura commands.

Our monsters dodge the attack, but Mystical Elf gets caught in the blast, causing its destruction. Isis flinches, but doesn't look too harmed. "Duos, attack!" Seto demands.

"Diabound, counterattack!"

Diabound fires multiple attacks at our monsters, which hit, but luckily they're not destroyed. My chest constricts in pain from the attack, but I try to numb it. Diabound fires another attack and this time, and destroys all of our monsters, except for Mahad. I cough as the air in my lungs leaves me and I notice a few drops of blood fall to the floor from my mouth. As Karim lies there weakly, two spirit-like creatures fly up to him and take the Millennium Scale out of his hand and give it to Bakura. "Ah, yes, another Item claimed." Bakura smirks.

"Urg… Damn him…" I hear Seto mutter.

A dark cackle is heard from behind us. We turn around to see Aknadin slowly walking down the steps of the chamber. The hood from his robes covers most of his face, but from what I can see, he has a twisted look in his eye and a few strands of his white hair dangles over his face. I watch as he stumbles toward us and his expression is staring to creep me out. I look to his hand to see the Millennium Key in his grasp, "That Item belongs to Shada!" Seto says, "What have you done with him?"

"That is not your concern." Aknadin says walking past us, "But these Items will soon come together on the place they belong; the Tablet of the Realm of the Dead!"

_The Tablet of the Realm of the Dead? _I've heard of that before. Mahad told me it was a tablet that opens the Realm of the Dead. But, in order for that, all eight Items must be placed within it. That must be the tablet that lies next to Bakura. I turn around when I hear a grunt coming from the staircase, "Shada?" I say.

He looks inured and has to clutch the wall for support, "C-careful, Aknadin is a traitor." He says weakly, "He attacked me. Now, give me back my Key!"

He lunges toward Aknadin, "Release me!" Aknadin shouts shoving him to the ground.

"Master Aknadin, what is the meaning of this?" Seto asks, "Truly you could not be a traitor, you are a Priest of the great Pharaoh!"

"Hmph… not anymore. A _new _Pharaoh shall take the throne, and only then, will I be a Priest by his side."

_A new Pharaoh? What does he mean? _"Do not speak such mockery in front of our beloved King!"

"Silence!"

Aknadin raises his hand in the air and suddenly none of us can move. I can't even blink! Bakura smirks as Aknadin walks up to us and stands in front of me first. The look in his eye is just terrifying and twisted. Corrupt, even. He reaches toward me and yanks the Pendant from around my neck and then grabs the remaining Items from the other Priests. Aknadin backs away from us, but still faces us and reaches for the Millennium Eye within his socket. Without hesitation, he rips it from the socket and I see blood run down his cheek.

Aknadin now walks toward the Tablet of the Realm of the Dead. I watch as he begins to place the remaining Items within the tablet and Bakura turns to face us. "Yes, yes!" Bakura says, "The Great Evil God will soon rise forth once again! Zorc, please, I lend you my power!"

The tablet begins to glow and a beam of light covers Bakura. Bakura's body begins to turn to dust as the very life is sucked out of him and all that's left is his cloak. Diabound shatters to dust as well. _Wait, the Great Evil God? Oh no, it can't be Zorc. He can't be revived. _Now a giant purple cloud of smoke emerges from the tablet and forms into the shape of a demon. That must be Zorc Necrophades. "Aknadin!" he says, "I know you have come here to gain my contract of the Dark. Why would you, creator of the Millennium Items? To repay you for offering your soul to be ruled by me, I shall grant you one wish."

"Yes, my lord!" Aknadin says, "I have but one wish! And that is for my only son, Seto, to become the new Pharaoh!"

_Aknadin is Seto's father?! _ "I have listened to it. Receive my power! Prepare to become the Great Dark Priest!"

Zorc moves his hand over Aknadin and shoots a bright purple light at him. Aknadin is transformed into a demon-like creature with long blood-colored hair, dark robes, a white mask with no facial features, and his hands are clawed. Zorc disappears and the Great Dark Priest/Aknadin now turns around to face us. "This is what I've waited for my entire life, Seto!" he says, "After abandoning you and your mother, the Millennium Items were created by my own hands! I had never imagined in my years that you'd become this powerful! Also, King Aknamkanon and I were twin brothers! So by birth, you are next in line for the throne after the Pharaoh and his descendants!"

A purple lightning charges up in Aknadin's hands and aims the attack toward us. The attack fires toward us, but we cannot move. A golden light appears in front of us and a man blocks the attack. Suddenly, all of us can move again. The man wears a long white cape, white robes that reveal his torso, and a golden mask over his face. "Who dares stand in my way?" Aknadin shouts.

"I am Hassan." The man says, "I am the eternal protector of the Pharaoh. For centuries, Egypt's King's fate has rested in my hands."

"Aknadin…" Seto starts, "Is it true? Am I really your son?"

"It is the truth, my son." Aknadin says, "Soon the Great Evil God will be resurrected, so come to me side, defeat that man, and the title of Pharaoh will belong to you!"

Hassan tilts his head toward Seto, "Do not be deceived by someone who surrendered their soul to an Evil God. Seto! Your duty is to protect the Pharaoh along with his country!"

"Seto, do not be deluded." Atem says, "For peace to return to our land, we must defeat Zorc together, not join him!"

"Silence!" Aknadin says, "Seto, if you join me, we can shape the world to our advantage and rule the Darkness! With the power of the White Dragon, everything will be yours! You shall become the Dark King!"

"The White Dragon?" I repeat.

"Kisara…" Seto says.

"Yes! The White Dragon is a beast beyond compare! The earth shutters by its very roar!" Aknadin shouts.

"Seto!" Atem says, "You can't let your heart be so much as touched by the Darkness! Wake up! Siding with Zorc will only lead to poisoning yourself and the world in darkness!"

Seto stares up confidently at Aknadin, "My King is right!" he says, "This world you speak of shall never become a peaceful place! Father… your transformation is only bringing shame to our family!"

"Enough! I shall take matters into my own hands!" Aknadin says.

He disappears and the room grows quiet. I glance around the room until I spot his entry point, "Seto! Behind you!" I shout.

Seto whips around as Aknadin appears behind me and then opens up a worm hole. Seto is thrown into the portal and Aknadin slowly begins to walk into it himself. Before my actions are known to even myself, I start running. I lunge straight into the portal behind them.


	22. Battle

I open my eyes as my body lies against the cold ground. I get up and start to look around. I'm in a dark, large room with pillars that surround the area. It's a chamber of sorts, but I can tell this one is above ground. But, no light comes into the room. I wonder if Zorc's resurrection is drawing even closer. The last thing I remember was jumping through that portal after Aknadin. Oh no… Seto!

I look around the room and then spot his unconscious body a few feet away. I run up to him and lightly shake him. "Seto, get up." I say.

His eyes begin to open and he gets up and looks around, "Where are we?" he asks.

"I'm not sure."

Seto begins to stand up, so I do so as well. "My Queen, we should leave. Hopefully, Aknadin does not show up…"

I nod and the two of us start to walk around searching for an exit. Nothing. The entire room is just that; a room. As of now, I can't see any exits in the darkness. "Seto!"

I turn around having heard that voice. The voice wasn't Aknadin, it was a girl. By her tone, she appears innocent and kind. At least, that's what I _suppose _she is. Seto starts looking around quickly, "Kisara!" he shouts back.

From the darkness, a girl begins to run in our direction. She stops for a moment once she sees us and begins panting. But, once she takes another step closer, she freezes. As do I. A shot of purple lightning goes right through her body. I cannot hide my gasp and even though I don't know the girl, I feel compelled to help her. I run up to her as she collapses to the ground. I glance up again to see Seto standing where he was in complete shock.

I look down at the girl who is struggling to grip onto her remaining life. I look down to her midsection to see the horrible injury. There isn't any blood coming, which is probably because it was burned away. Even if I could somehow try to heal the wound, I know it'll only be in vain. She'll die. I notice her eyes glance at me and then look over at Seto, "S-Seto…" she says weakly.

I look at Seto who remains there in silence. Only when she calls his name, is when he approaches her. He kneels beside her and places a hand on her own, "Kisara… please, do not leave me." He says.

She gives a sad attempt at a smile and then closes her eyes. This time, I can tell it's permanent. I lay Kisara back on the ground gently and take a deep breath. From Seto, I can see tears starting to brim his eyes. I've never seen him cry, ever. Kisara must've really meant something special to him.

I look around the room and follow the angle where I saw the lightning hit. By its color, I know who's responsible, but I must see where he is. I finally spot him on an upper level of the room and then he jumps down and stands in the shadows. The darkness makes Aknadin's evil cackle even creepier, "What a fool." He says, "That girl obviously doesn't know how to defend herself or the powers she possesses."Aknadin lifts his hand and then a stone tablet rises from the ground. From Kisara's corpse, comes a bright white orb of light. Seto and I watch as it flies toward the stone tablet and creates a carving of a dragon upon it. "Yes, my son. With the White Dragon in your grasp, the title of Dark King will easily come to you!"

"You… killed Kisara…" Seto mutters.

"It was a necessary requirement."

"No, it wasn't!" I hiss, "This girl has done nothing to you, but yet, you still were compelled to kill her! She was innocent! You speak of lives just as another candle burning out."

"This does not involve you! For my son to become King, he needs his desired powers! And to secure his throne, he must kill you, the current Pharaoh, and your descendant!"

I stand up quickly and glare at Aknadin, "Don't you dare touch my daughter!"

"That is not for me to do, its Seto's job."

I turn my head toward Seto who is barely paying attention to Aknadin and I. He just stares at Kisara like he's in some sort of daze. He snaps back to reality and stands up to face Aknadin, "Aknadin, what logic is there in the world you speak of?" he says, "I've now realized how truly dark and dry that world is. Kisara… has shown me the light. The solution to destroying this Darkness is through a light called 'Love'."

"Fool!" Aknadin says, "After all I've done for you, this is how you treat me. I am your father, your wisdom; I am the touch of reason to you. You must join me!"

Seto slumps his shoulders in defeat. "Perhaps… you are right."

"Seto, what are you saying?" I say, "You're going to betray us? The entire world?"

Seto says nothing as he slowly walks toward Aknadin. His eyes are shadowed, so I can't read them. He holds his hands behind his cape, making him look innocent. "Yes. Come, my son!" Aknadin says.

Seto immediately looks up at Aknadin. I can see flames passing through his eyes. "You bastard!" he shouts. He takes out a sword and stabs Aknadin in the heart. "I could never forgive you for all you have done… you are not my father."

Aknadin gags and his breathing starts to turn rapid as the sword still remains in his body, "So… this is how you truly feel." He says, "My son… the one I've loved with all my heart…. The one I've only tried to help. Could you not see that? I have done much for you, Seto, but I now see that those mere actions cannot change your heart. So, another force must take over… not only one man shall become the Dark King!"

Aknadin's body begins to disappear into a flash of smoke. The smoke moves slowly toward Seto, making him gag, but looks unharmed. I take a step closer to Seto, "Are you alright?" I ask.

Without warning, Seto whips around and swings his arm around so it collides with my face. I stumble but regain myself, but my being remains in shock. "Wha-? What was that for?!"

"Hahaha!" he laughs, "I am the Dark King! You think I would really stay on your side? Of course not. Who would pass up the opportunity for such a role?" Something isn't right. This isn't Seto at all. I know how he acts, and this isn't him. "I will accomplish the title Fate has given me. And my royalty… starts with your death!"

_Has he really betrayed us? _That is the only explanation. In order to protect myself and the kingdom, I'll need to defeat him. No matter how much I'd hate to do so. "If you have really fallen to the Darkness… then I have no choice. The war begins now."

Seto smirks and holds up his DiaDhank, "Come forth, White Dragon!"

The stone tablet that the White Dragon was sealed within begins to glow and the beast appears before us and roars loudly. Its body is shiny that almost resembles silver and its eyes are small, but hold a depth within them. It's like staring into the dragon version of Kisara. I now hold up my own DiaDhank, "Ounouti, help me out!"

She appears by my side and fires a blast toward the White Dragon. The White Dragon counters with a burst of destructive light coming from its mouth. I knew it was powerful, but I never imagined it held _that _much power. The two attacks hit each other, but I watch in horror as the White Dragon's attack quickly begins to overcome that of Ounouti's. Her body gets easily burned apart as I feel my life energy leave my body. I fall to my knees and hold my body as the pain shoots through me. I hear Seto corruptly laugh as the White Dragon returns to its tablet.

"Zaria! Seto!"

I turn around to see Atem running toward us from a distant hallway. He glances at me and then immediately comes to my aid. He helps me up onto my feet and I blink a few times to keep from fainting, "What happened to you?" he asks.

Before I can answer, Seto interrupts me, "Nice of you to come, Pharaoh. Death is waiting for you and then I shall be rewarded."

"What are you talking about?"

"Seto betrayed us." I say, "He tried to join Aknadin, but then killed him. Ever since that moment, he's been like this."

Atem glares at Seto, "Seto, what has gotten into you?"

"My eyes have been opened. I realize now that I am the true Dark King. I will rule the Dark!"

Atem stands there shocked and then turns toward me, "Can you stand alright?"

"Yeah." I say as he lets go of me.

"Good. Stay out of this; I must deal with him alone."

I nod. "The Darkness is hungry Pharaoh." Seto says, "It shall be only filled once the earth is within its grasp. The rise of Zorc Necrophades is upon us, and everything will come into his merciless grip! How does it feel to be powerless?"

"That's enough. Now tell me. Why have you chosen Zorc's side over mine?"

"That's where you're wrong, Pharaoh. I have no allegiance with Zorc. But, I don't have an allegiance with you either. The Great Evil God is merely to rebuild the earth so that I may rule over it. I'm here to prove who rightfully deserves the title of 'Pharaoh'!"

"Your betrayal will not be taken lightly. I will defeat you!"

"Then let this duel begin, Pharaoh! I've waited this moment for ages! I will have a legacy of 'he who defeated the Pharaoh'! White Dragon, come forth!"

"Assist me; Dark Magician!"

The two of them commands their monsters to attack each other and Dark Magician/Mahad begins to charge an attack from his staff. But, the White Dragon does nothing. It merely stares at us and almost looks sad. "What are you waiting for?" Seto says, "Attack!"

The White Dragon gives a soft roar and then bursts to pieces. The sparks of light coming from the shattered pieces fall over Seto, making him yell. A dark smoke comes from his body and evaporates into thin air. Seto falls onto his knees and I now understand. That was the same smoke Aknadin disappeared into. He must've been controlling Seto. I'm an idiot for thinking he betrayed us. I explain this to Atem and he hangs his head low. Mahad disappears and Atem slowly walks up to Seto, "Seto," he starts, "I'm sorry, my friend. I have misjudged you. I have not realized the inner ordeal you suffered."

Seto stands and looks up at Atem, "It is alright. I should be the one to apologize. Please, forgive me… both of you."

Atem and I nod signaling that we do. Seto gives his own nod and then looks toward Kisara's body. He walks toward her and holds her in his arms in front of the White Dragon tablet. I notice tears falling from his eyes. But, soon, the earth begins to tremor. "Zorc is coming, we must go." Atem says.

Seto hears this and lays Kisara back onto the ground. We run out of the building and find that the sky has been clouded already. Zorc Necrophades has risen again.


	23. Revelation

The three of us ride on Atem's horse quickly toward the palace. Atem has been informing us on the recent events. Unfortunately, Karim lost his life energy and faced the punishment of death. Before Atem left Kul Elna, the Priests were trying to head back to the palace as well, so they should be already there. Hassan has been weakened and has since been defeated. We reach the cliff coming before the Imperial City to find soldiers lining it along with catapults and other weapons.

Once we're riding through the crowds of soldiers, I notice that the remaining Priests stand among them. We stop next to them and the three of us jump off of the horse. "Are you all alright?" Isis asks, "What happened to Aknadin?"

"He rests within the underworld." Seto says, "It's where he belongs."

Atem takes a step forward, "Zorc is closely approaching." He says, "Prepare…" he suddenly begins to lean forward, but I catch him from hitting the ground.

"Pharaoh! You are much too weak now. Please, allow me to redeem myself and lead our armies."

Atem nods as he stands up again, "I'm counting on you."

Seto nods in response and steps forward in front of the soldiers. The Priests, Atem, and I stand back out of their way, but still close enough to watch. Within time, I can see the body of Zorc coming into view. His skin is a purplish color and he has horns that stick from the top of his head, a dragon head between his legs, small wings, and his eyes are like red demons all on their own. Seto steps forward and faces the soldiers, "Listen up!" he shouts, "That beast is to come nowhere near us at any cost, even with that of our lives!"

The soldiers yell in a sense of victory and begin preparing for battle. As they prepare, I look at Zorc's movement. Every step he takes results in any sign of life to be destroyed. Just walking past a pond will drain it or a tree to wilt. "Shoot!" Seto commands the soldiers.

The catapults launch rocks and spears in Zorc's direction. Even before they touch him they, they all evaporate into thin air. "That monster…" Seto says. He now turns back to the soldiers, "Do not hold back! Shoot!"

"Pathetic bugs." Zorc says. His voice is just how I imagined it. Its corrupt, roars like thunder, and how I'd assume Darkness itself would speak. He raises his arm into the air and swipes it in midair, causing all of our catapults to shatter. His power is just as the legends said, maybe even greater. Zorc's horns now light up and shoot an attack at us which destroys even more of our weapons. The causalities keep piling up.

"If this continues…" Shada says.

"Seto, we must regroup our army!" Atem suggests.

Seto turns toward Zorc, "Bastard…" he mutters, "Retreat!"

We head backwards to the gates of the city, but Zorc still approaches. He doesn't walk quickly, but rather walks slow just to enjoy the destruction. I notice Shimon and Mana now run up to us from the crowd of soldiers, "You're back! You're back!" Mana says.

Shimon looks up to Zorc and sighs, "If he is not defeated soon, then our world will be consumed in Darkness." he says, "This curse may never be lifted."

Zorc now stands a mere few feet away from us and towers over all of us. "Priests!" Seto shouts, "We must gather our strongest creatures!" I would join the battle, but I look to my DiaDhank to see my energy is too low. The same goes for Atem. Isis summons Spiria, Shada with Two-Headed Jackal Warrior, Seto with Duos, and Mana ends up summoning a creature called Dark Magician Girl. She really is growing to become a true magician.

"Don't waste your breath." Zorc says, "No matter the number of creatures you summon, I will prevail." All of our creatures attack Zorc, but in vain. Zorc's eyes glow an even deeper red, "Don't you know when to give up? Disappear, pathetic bugs!"

Zorc swipes his hand in midair again. Spiria is able to protect us, but the surrounding soldiers aren't that lucky. The clouds above us begin to turn even darker and lightning soon joins. A strike of lightning hits down at us, and before I realize who it'll hit, Shada pushes him out of the way.

Atem falls to the ground as we watch Shada get electrocuted. I can't hide my yell at watching such horror. Shada's DiaDhank cracks and breaks apart. Two-Headed Jackal Warrior disappears. His robes are singed and his body lies there motionless. His eyes are still open, but he's within seconds of death. Atem turns toward him, "S-Shada! Hold on!" he says.

"Pharaoh… I'm glad… you're safe." Shada says weakly.

His eyes close and his body goes stiff. I praise him for saving Atem's life, but… he can't die. Zorc has done too much and he's only just arrived. Atem stands back up and balls his hands into fists. "Shada… there is only one option left." He says.

Zorc steps closer to the city and fires an attack toward it, causing part of it to catch fire. Seto steps to the remaining soldiers and the last couple of catapults we have left "Don't let up!" he shouts, "If he manages to pass through the city, the palace will be his next target!"

Zorc fires another attack, but this time it's aimed toward the palace walls. They crack, but aren't brought down. "Zorc is truly too strong!" Shimon says, "We'll have no chance of winning at this rate."

Atem looks up at him, "But-!"

"There is one hope left…. The Egyptian Gods must end this."

"That's not possible." I interrupt, "Without the Millennium Items, we're powerless."

"But it's our one last hope is this world."

"We must return to the Millennium Items." Isis says.

"The Items have been scattered when the Tablet cracked." Shimon says, "Will we have the time to find them?"

"I'll go find them!" Atem says.

"No, our soldiers need someone to look up to." Isis says.

"Then I'll go." I say, "Finding them shouldn't be hard."

"No." Atem says, "It's too dangerous to go out there."

"Pharaoh, I will accompany her." Isis says, "With Spiria, we should be able to locate them quickly."

"Me too! Me too!" Mana says jumping, "I'll do my best and take the place of my master!"

Atem stares at the three of us, "Alright." He says, "Isis, Mana, I expect my wife to come back safely. I expect the same for all of you. We're all counting on you."

"Yeah!" Mana says.

"Leave by the south." Seto says, "I'll draw Zorc's attention away from there."

"Thank you, Seto." Isis says.

Atem turns to me, "Please be careful." He says.

I smirk, "I'll do my best."

He smiles and kisses me. I depart from him and Isis, Mana, and I run off toward the south side of the city. Zorc doesn't notice us, for Seto has commanded a massive attack on him. We reach the south entrance and Isis holds up her DiaDhank, "Guardian of the Fortress!" she says.

A small blue dragon appears before us and Isis drops to her knees. I notice the gauge on her DiaDhank is nearly empty. "Isis, are you alright?" I ask.

"Yes… let's go." She says.

Mana and I help her onto Guardian of the Fortress and fly off to the Millennium Items. Luckily, Zorc doesn't see us. Within time, we finally make it to the rubble of Kul Elna. The place looks even worse than it originally did. Before, some structures were actually standing, but now, it's just all rubble. "Where could they be?" Mana wonders.

"I've found them!" Isis says.

I follow her gaze and see shimmers of gold from the piles of rock. Guardian of the Fortress lands and the three of us jump down and begin digging them out. My hands scurry around the rock and sand and I eventually find the Pendant. I pick it up and place it around my neck where it belongs. I immediately feel my energy returning and my DiaDhank gauge is refilled. I notice Isis pick up the Necklace.

Mana takes out a brown sack and starts to place the Items within them. "Have we found all of them?" I ask.

"We're missing one." Mana says.

Somehow, I know which one she's referring to. I search through the chunks of rock and throw them aside. I stop once I see a shimmer of gold. I pull out the Millennium Item and put it into the sack. "Let's go." Isis says.

We get onto Guardian of the Fortress and quickly make our way back to the Imperial City. It seems that Zorc hasn't completely demolished everything yet. "We made it in time!" Mana says.

I'm worried Zorc will notice us now though. It was easy escaping, but coming back will be more difficult. The army continues to attack Zorc, but it still does has no effect on him. Zorc turns around upon noticing us, "The presence of the Millennium Items…" he says, "How ingenious."

The dragon head upon him fires an attack toward us, but we dodge it. It keeps firing multiple attacks, but we dodge each of them. Now I'm holding onto Guardian of the Fortress for dear life. My hands feel like they might slip, but luckily, we stop swerving. We land at one side of the city, "Get down." Isis says, "I'll act as a distraction."

"No, you aren't going to fight." I say. Isis looks toward me, "Isis, we won't win this battle if another one dies. The Pharaoh expects all of us to return alive, and it's your duty as a Priest to not betray him. Please, don't do it."

She closes her eyes in silence, "Yeah, we'll all fight together!" Mana says.

Isis jumps off of Guardian of the Fortress. "Alright, let's go." She says.

She sends Guardian of the Fortress to go and fight Zorc. We run toward the spot where we last saw Atem and the others, but Isis stops after a moment. I look up toward Zoc to see that he just destroyed Guardian of the Fortress. "Isis!" Mana cries.

"I'm fine. Let's go." She says.

Atem and the others finally come into view. "Hey guys! We're back!" Mana shouts.

Atem looks straight at me and then wraps his arms around me, "Are you alright?" he asks.

"Yeah, we found the Millennium Items." I say.

Mana steps closer to Atem and starts digging through the sack. She then pulls out the Millennium Puzzle and hands it to him. He takes it and the Puzzle begins to glow now that it's in his grasp again. Atem walks past all of us and stares directly at Zorc confidently, "Zorc!" he shouts, "With this, I will fight for all the lives you have destroyed! This world is not one for you to take! The Light will conquer all that is Dark!"

"Pharaoh," Seto starts, "you mustn't! I will handle-!" I cut him off by putting my arm in front of him. If Atem wants to face Zorc, then we should allow him to do so. Seto hesitantly nods and takes a step backwards.

"Zorc!" Atem continues, "You claim to be a 'Great Evil God', but, can you really compare to the true Gods of _our_ land?" Atem begins to place the Puzzle around his neck, "Prepare to be judged by the Gods of Egypt!"

Atem lifts his DiaDhank into the air and the earth begins to quiver. I look to Atem's tablet shrine to see a tricolored light emerge from the tip of it and shoot into the clouds. The blue light travels behind Zorc and the blue God that I remember being called Obelisk rises from the earth. The red light shoots into the sky and a long red dragon comes from the clouds, that I recall being destroyed by Diabound that one time. Finally, a yellow-white light comes through from the clouds and a bird-like golden creature comes from the sky. I don't need to know its name, for I know it is the very form of Ra.

Zorc laughs mockingly at the Gods, "Come, pathetic Gods!" he says. "Trumping Darkness' power is a foolish goal of yours!"

"Obelisk!" Atem says, "Unleash the rage of the earth!" Obelisk charges toward Zorc, causing him to be knocked down. However, he manages to get onto his feet again, "Osiris! Inflict the judgment of the sky!" Osiris (the red dragon) flies up high into the sky and releases a lightning-like attack from its mouth, which makes Zorc stumble, "Ra! Use your light to make the darkness vanish!" Ra flaps its wings in brisk movements, which creates a long thin tornado. The tornado transforms into a beam of light, which hits Zorc, making him roar loudly. "Now! Combine your strengths! Simultaneous attack!"

All three Gods charge up their most powerful attacks and launch them all at Zorc at the same time. Obelisk sends a devastating punch attack, while Osiris sends a thundering lightning attack. Finally, Ra transforms into its true form; that of the phoenix. It charges straight at Zorc and flies straight through his body, making him yell in pain. Zorc's body bursts into flames as he falls to the ground and the force from the attack sends a blast of wind toward all of us, which knocks all of us to the ground. Once I get to my feet, I can't see Zorc anywhere, but the Gods stand tall. "Is it over..?" I ask.

Perhaps he could be gone, but something tells me otherwise. A crater lies in front of the Gods where Zorc was struck down, and the smoke coming from it evaporates. I look to the sky and notice that the dark clouds are departing and the warm sun glows over us. The entire kingdom baths in the light. "You did it!" Mana says.

"No." Atem says. Just as he closes his mouth, the ground begins to shake, "He's coming back!"

Out of the earth, comes an outstretched arm that could only belong to a certain demon. The arm reaches up higher and higher and seems to be reaching for the very sun itself. The sun now begins to fold over in darkness. It remains in the sky, but a veil of darkness shields it from us. The sky remains blue, but only for the moment. "Gods of Egypt!" Atem yells, "Destroy Zorc before the Darkness reawakens!"

Ra flies toward Zorc, but his arm grabs onto Ra's leg. Ra flies higher up into the air to escape, but this only pulls Zorc out of the ground completely. Obelisk grabs Zorc's own leg, but only rises into the air with him. Ra finally escapes, but Zorc and Obelisk remain in midair. "Fools!" Zorc shouts, "Darkness is in my hands!"

Osiris and Ra try to attack Zorc with an aerial attack, but then Zorc's body begins to emit a dark wave. It hits Obelisk first and turns him to stone, causing him to come crumbling to the ground. Next, Osiris meets the same fate, and finally Ra. The entire kingdom lies back into the darkness. "Obelisk-!" Atem shouts, "Osiris-! Ra-!"

"T-that's not possible!" I say, "The Gods are the most powerful creatures in creation!"

Zorc sinks down to the ground and stands before Obelisk and laughs, "Look at your so-called Gods!" he says, "They're helpless! Let your hope crumble with their very bodies!"

He places his foot over Obelisk, which breaks the statue to pieces. Atem gasps and falls onto his knees. I notice his body is shaking. "Please be alright!" I say.

"It's alright. I'm fine." He says.

"HAHAHA!" Zorc laughs, "Perhaps that is enough… for now. But, just look at your Gods, Pharaoh! With every step I take, they break apart just like your very body! Do you not understand? I am Darkness! I shall never be destroyed, for I live within everything. I am invincible!"

Atem slowly gets back onto his feet, but refuses my help. The soldiers surrounding us begin to talk amongst themselves. They claim there is no hope. That we're outnumbered. That there is nothing left to fight for. To run away. And that's what they do. Even if Seto tries to encourage them to stay, they just keep running. Zorc laughs as the dragon head on him begins to fire an attack toward the city. "What is there left to do?" I ask Atem, "Are we just supposed to wait for death to come?"

Atem lowers his head and begins to think. He stays like that for a few minutes as Seto, Isis, Mana, and I watch him. After a while, he lifts his head up like he's had a sudden realization. "What is it?" I ask, "What do you want us to do?"

He turns toward me and gives a sad attempt at a smile. His expression is scaring me, I'm afraid he'll do something reckless. He leans toward me and kisses me deeply. Now I'm _really _afraid for him. He departs from me and places his hands on my shoulders, "Go back to the palace." He says.

"What? No. I'm not leaving you."

"I'm giving you no other choice. Go to the palace and make sure Layla is alright, okay?"

"But, I…"

"Go. I'll be alright. Just… don't look back. Whatever you think, don't turn back."

Tears begin to brim my eyes and I wrap my arms tightly around him, "Alright."

He looks around at everyone else, "…Mana."

"Yes?" she says.

"I want you to go back with Zaria. Seto and Isis, you may stay or go. It does not matter to me."

"I will stay with you until the end, my King." Seto says.

"As will I." Isis says.

I turn back toward Atem, who removes my arms from around him, "Go." He says.

I sadly nod and turn toward Mana. She nods toward me and both of us turn to the palace. We start running through the burning city and pass by the screaming people. It takes all of my strength to not look back. Tears leak from my eyes at the thought of what Atem may or may not do. I can't look back. Even if he dies. I couldn't bear to watch that sort of event. I now hear Zorc's deep voice from behind me, "Ha! What are you doing, Pharaoh? Performing some sort of death ritual? How fitting."

I shut my eyes tightly thinking of how everything is unfolding. I open my eyes again to see we're right by the doors to the palace. I stare up at the giant doors and Mana has already slipped inside. I'm about to do so myself, but then I notice a golden light coming from behind me. I can't help it. I spin around to see the source of this light. That very light is emitting from Atem's body. _What could he be doing? _The golden light releases thick strands of light that clasp onto Zorc. The same spreads emerge from the ground as well and seem to be pulling him into the earth. "DAMN YOU!" Zorc shouts, "If you think you can defeat me, you're wrong! I shall return, and all life will know the meaning of death!"

Even more strands of light seem to grasp onto Zorc. No matter the kind of resistance he gives, it's useless. The light pulls him farther into the ground as he yells in anger. Even from this distance, the light makes me shield my eyes. When I can't hear Zorc's yelling anymore, I finally open my eyes. My eyes scan the area, but he's nowhere. _Could such a beast like Zorc truly be defeated? _Yes. I feel it within my heart. It's all over now.

I look over toward Atem to see him stand there weakly in the distance. _What has he done? What kind of ritual was that? _The thoughts ponder over into my mind until I come to a realization. Oh no. Not that. Him, the Egyptian Gods, Zorc Necrophades. That entire story comes back into my head. The prophecy said Zorc would rise again… and he did. It said the Chosen Pharaoh would use the Gods against him…. And he did. It has something to do with his name…. and it does.

Atem has done everything the prophecy said he would. His name must've been used for that spell. _But, that means it just can't be used, right? _ This thought keeps me from shattering, but I also have another belief. I glance back to Atem to watch him fall to his knees…. And then finally the ground.


	24. Conclusion

Safe. That's the word everyone is using now. Safe. I hate how innocent it sounds. _When is anyone truly safe in this world? When does anybody not worry about the events of the future? _ For me, I'm almost terrified. I've pieced everything together. Atem hasn't said a word about the defeat of Zorc, but I know what he's done. Whenever I call him by name, I notice he almost flinches, so I know what happens now. And I certainly, do not feel safe with the consequences. I sit on the edge of the bed and wait for Atem to return. Layla quietly sleeps in her crib, while I feel a pit in my stomach. I finally look up when I see Atem enter the room and shut the door behind him.

I can see the serious look in his eyes. "Zaria…" he starts.

"So," I interrupt, "When were you planning to tell me about Zorc and the fulfillment of that prophecy?"

He stands there shocked. I glance up to him to see him shut his mouth and just stare at me. "I told you not to look back."

"I couldn't resist it, alright? Answer my question."

He sighs, "I would've told you this moment… if you didn't already know. How much do you know?"

"Everything. I've put it together on my own. You're leaving, correct?"

Once again, he's shocked. This time, he lowers his head and stares to the ground, "Yes." He murmurs, "I'm leaving to prevent Zorc from ever rising again."

I stand up and walk over to him so I stand in front of him. This makes him look up at me again, "How is that information not important enough to tell me?"

"It's only been a day."

"Is it?"

"Why are you making such a big deal over this?"

Now I'm the one taken aback. _Why would he ask such a thing? Of course I'd make a big deal over it! _Somehow, I'm more saddened than angry at this comment. Without knowing my actions, I quickly wrap my arms around Atem and lean against him. I want him to comfort me, but a part of me tells me I don't need him to comfort me. He just stands there though and doesn't even so much as lift his own arms. "Because… I don't want to lose you."

His arms now wrap around my body and he rests his chin on the top of my head. "I'm sorry. I know you don't want to. I don't want to leave you either. But… no one will ever be safe until I do so."

There's that word again. It's so false. I just merely nod because I know he needs to protect the key to Zorc's sealing. Atem lifts his chin from the top of my head, making me look up at him. "I arranged a meeting soon." He says, "I think it best that you come."

I nod and separate from him. He grabs my hand and leads me out into the hallway. We walk silently down the hallways and into the throne room. Waiting there are Seto, Isis, and Mana. They know of Atem's plans already, so there's not much to be said. We all stand there glancing between each other in silence. Seto clears his throat and begins speaking, "My King, if I may ask… what your plans are?"

Atem sighs, "As I've already discussed with you, I'm sealing myself within the Millennium Puzzle. My name is the only thing that can tie Zorc away, and I want to make sure its hidden well. That's why… I've come to the decision to wipe my memory."

"What?" I ask.

The others also seem shocked by this. "Yes. I want to make sure that I don't even know that information. It's too fragile to be put in the wrong hands. And for extra measure… the Millennium Puzzle must be shattered."

"What shall we do with the pieces?" Seto asks.

Atem ponders this for a minute, "I want them in my tomb. I realize that it has started production since I was born, but hopefully the right modifications can be made."

"Your father has made some specific requests for your tomb."

"Yes, and I expect them to lived up to. Along with some trials of my own. I hope that if Zorc is ever somehow resurrected…. That someone worthy of the Puzzle may release me to face him again."

"Pharaoh," Isis says, "I will devote my life to protecting your tomb."

"That is not necessary."

"Yes… it is. I will make sure that your tomb will be protected from thieves and the greedy. I am well prepared for the job. As a Priestess, I am to devote my life to you, so that's what I'll do. My descendants will guard your tomb until the day of your resurrection comes."

Atem gives a small smile, "Very well. Seto."

"Yes, my King?" he asks.

"I want you to become Pharaoh."

"W-what did you say..?"

"Become the new Pharaoh."

Seto's jaw drops at this and stands there and silence. After a minute, he regains the sense to close his mouth, "Y-yes, of course. If the King wishes so."

"What about the Millennium Items?" I ask, "What is to happen to them?"

Isis steps forward, "We shall still use them within our court, but we cannot appoint any new Priests. If people found out about the damage they're caused…. They will be used, but the Items not within use will be locked away. I will safeguard them within the tomb."

"Is that all my King?" Seto asks.

"One last request." Atem says, "All traces of my name and me will be erased. To the kingdom, I will be noted as dead. Seto. I also want you to personally protect Zaria and our daughter. Is that alright?"

"Y-yes, of course, my King."

This is actually happening now. It's too real of an experience. Like so long ago, he's causing me to break inside. My heart feels like it's not even beating at this point. But I manage to say something, "When are you leaving?"

Atem stares at me, "The sooner the better."

He couldn't possible mean now. I stare to Mana, Isis, and Seto, who know the answer. He does. I wish we had more time. I feel the tears pour from my eyes as I hang my head low. Atem's arms slowly pull me close to him and I'm now sobbing into his chest. He pulls me closely to him, and when he separates, I won't want to let go. Atem touches my chin and lifts my head so I stare up into his crimson eyes. He leans into me and kisses me deeply. The sorrow and warmth from his body transfers over to me, but I don't want it to end.

Atem finally separates from me, "I love you Zaria."

"I love you too."

He gives a weak attempt at a smile and steps away from me. He removes the Puzzle from around his neck and holds it in his hands. He begins to chant a series of words in Egyptian as I watch his body begin to disappear. It turns into a translucent form and then a bright white light glows around him. All of us need to shield our eyes from it. When I stare back at the spot he was standing at, I watch the Puzzle collapse to the ground. As it falls, it begins to break into dozens of golden pieces. Isis and Seto bow their heads in sorrow and Mana begins to sob. I fall to my knees and reach for the golden pieces. I touch one of them and I can already feel Atem's energy radiated from it. He's gone. I can't bring him back.

~.~.~

It's only been a few hours. The sun begins to set and the feint light comes into the bedroom. I lie on the bed and stare blankly at the ceiling. Everything feels so empty. There's a hole within my heart. _I_ feel empty. I'm awakened from my thoughts when I hear Layla start to whimper. I sit up and stare over at the crib. Layla's lucky. She's too young to feel the pain I do. But, once she's older, the pain f finding out about her father will get to her. I muster up my strength and step over to the crib and look down at her. She almost looks too happy. I pick her up and hold her within my arms. The pure innocence within her almost makes me smile. Almost.

My eyes then stare down at hers. The crimson… it's just like… Atem. I almost can't bear to even look at my own daughter now. There are too many memories of him inside of her. I'd almost rather be dead than live through all of this. I take a deep breath and look down at Layla again. She attempts a smile as I kiss her forehead. "You know I love you, Layla." I whisper, "But… I just can't. No world is worth living without your father, I wish he was here. You'll understand that someday."

She just stares up at me, obviously not comprehending what I just said. I kiss her forehead once again and lay her back into her crib. I turn toward the door, but glance back for a moment. I sigh and exit the bedroom. This place is too depressing now. I have to be where he is. I briskly walk through the halls until I hit the throne room. I open the doors and walk inside to find Seto speaking with a few advisors. He looks straight at me and then dismisses the others, who leave us alone in the room. Seto turns to face me, "What is it, Zaria?" he asks.

"I can't take it anymore. I have to go with him." I say.

"Pardon?"

"Your orders are being changed. Seto, you don't need to worry about personally protecting me, I won't be around. Your only task is to raise and protect my daughter."

"What are you planning?"

"It's only been a few hours, I realize that, but… when I was looking at Layla… I saw him. There's too much in this world that will remind me of him. Every single day of my life, no matter what I do, I'll wake up and feel depressed to keep knowing that he's not here. I need to be with him."

"Do you realize what you're asking?"

"Of course I do. I don't want to live with a broken heart. Layla could live a life with a pure heart, when I'd have a shattered one. Even if you are Pharaoh now, and if you refuse my request, I will still leave."

Seto remains silent as he ponders over my request. I've realized that I'll have to leave Layla and everyone else, but Atem needs me. If Zorc really will rise again, I want to be with him. Even if neither of us remember each other. I look up once I here Seto sigh, "If you so wish, then I cannot stop you."

I give a half smile, "Thank you, Seto. Once I'm gone, I also want every trace of my being erased as well. I'd be for the best. About the Millennium Pendant, I want it in his tomb. I think he'd want me to be with him as much as I want to be with him."

"Yes, my Queen. When are you putting this plan into motion?"

"The sooner the better." Mimicking Atem's words gives me a pit in my stomach, but also a sense of content.

Seto bows toward me, "I wish you a safe journey."

I nod and begin to remove the Pendant from around my neck. I stare long and hard at it and think of the experiences I've had with this Item. I now clutch it in my hands and try to remember the Egyptian chant as best I can. I speak them aloud and feel my very soul leaving me. My eyes glance to my body to see it starting to turn translucent. I have finally found my purpose. It was to live on and become the wife of a powerful Pharaoh. To become a mother toward his future heir. To become a Queen that protected her land greatly. My last task… is to help my husband.

_Atem, I'm ready to repay you for all the love and care you've given me. I will help you in the next time and love you more than you love me. I only hope we'll awaken together. Only then, will we be truly together, my love._

**Fourteen Years Later…**

**Layla**

I skip merrily around the palace as I make my way to the throne room. I finally approach the giant golden doors and gently push them open. I look to the throne to see Uncle Seto sitting upon it. He's of course not really my uncle, but it's a name I've developed for him since I was little. He was more like a father to me, but I wouldn't disrespect my own late father by calling Uncle Seto 'Father'. He sits there rather lonely as usual, which makes him look older than he actually is, even though he's only a few years more than twice my age.

Surrounding him is two of his Priests, Mana and Isis. Mana wears the Millennium Ring around her neck, while Isis wears the Millennium Necklace. Uncle Seto has the Millennium Rod at his belt. He says the remaining Items are hidden somewhere in an underground tomb where Isis' family rests. She has children and a husband that guard the tomb of my father, which she does so as well, but comes here to act as a Priestess on most occasions. Mana isn't really as uptight as Isis or Seto, but mostly raves about her magical talent. Seto says she was best friends with my parents, but she doesn't talk about them.

"Hi Uncle Seto! Or, sorry, Pharaoh… Morning Isis and Mana!" I address them all giving a short wave.

Isis and Mana smile at me as Seto speaks up, "Happy birthday, Layla." He says.

I smile largely at him. Today is the day of me entering my fourteenth year. One of the good things about becoming older is that I'll be able to become Queen sooner. The studies are boring, but I'm sure the experience will pay off. But, I frown as I think over the questions in my mind. "What is on your mind?" Isis asks.

I stare up at the three of them, "I just thought..." I mumble, "I'm getting older, so maybe… you could tell me of my real parents…"

All of their eyes widen and I notice Mana'a eyes starting to tear up. Isis and her look to Seto to see him sigh, "I guess I should've known you'd bring this up someday…" he says, "Very well. You deserve to know after all these years."

I force a smile upon my lips. Seto begins to tell me of how after I was born, my parents became Pharaoh and Queen. On their coronation day, a thief named Bakura showed up and demanded the Millennium Items. They fought against him for a couple of days, each time losing either another Priest or another's life. Finally, Father went to a sacred village called Kul Elna to defeat Bakura, but became unsuccessful alone. With Mother and the other Priests coming to his aid, Bakura was defeated, but not before a previous Priest named Aknadin betrayed them. Using all of the Millennium Items, he was able to revive the God of Darkness, Zorc Necrophades. Aknadin was then transformed into a Dark Priest and kidnapped Seto, and Mother went to rescue him. Father later defeated him, but not before Zorc was resurrected. They fought Zorc with all of their strength, but the casualties continued. Finally, Father was able to revive the Egyptian Gods, but even they weren't strong enough to overpower Zorc. Using his last effort, Father sealed Zorc away using the spell this prophecy predicted. He was then sealed within his Millennium Puzzle and placed inside his tomb.

I listen closely to every word Seto says. Part of it doesn't make sense though. I look up toward Seto, "But…" I start, "Mother was never involved in the spell… so why was she sealed away too?"

Seto sighs, "The very thought of being without your father…. She said it would kill her. Even if I didn't approve of her sealing herself away, she'd have done it anyway."

"Didn't she love me at all?" Tears fight to leak from my eyes.

"Of course she did, with all of her heart. But, she felt the need to protect your father, and to be with him. She knew you could live with a pure heart, when hers would be…. Destructive."

I suppose her story makes sense. If I really loved someone like she loved my father, then I guess I would've gone after them as well. I'm just glad they're together to protect each other, no matter how much I miss them. I smile at the thought of them, "Thank you, Seto." I say.

He nods in response. I look to Mana and Isis to see them smiling at me, "You are truly their daughter." Isis says.

I feel tears well up in my eyes as I thank her. I hope my parents will have a safe journey in the future. And hopefully, two kind souls will release them from their prison and help them complete their task. Once that's complete, the afterlife will wait for them. Until that day, I won't fully be healed. I'll miss them too much. _Mother… Father…. Safe journey… I'll love you forever, and I'll be waiting once death takes the three of us…._


End file.
